'Time's up on Indo-US Nuclear deal'

{image-gary ackerman_03072008.jpg news.oneindia.in}New Delhi, Jul 3: Even as the Bush administration continued to push for the nuclear deal, an influential US legislator said that the US Congress will not have enough time to take up the nuclear deal.

Congressman Gary Ackerman, who is chairman of the House of Representatives panel on west and south Asia, said that time has already run out for getting US Congressional approval for the 123 Agreement, the final step towards operationalising the nuclear deal. "Time is getting shorter each day and India must act fast by September due to the presidential elections in November. We are hopeful that the deal will go through."

Ackerman is likely to meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee and National Security Advisor (NSA) M K Narayan.

Ackerman, a pro-India Congressman who heads the House Foreign Affairs Sub-Committee on South Asia, has been maintaining that the gains in bilateral relationship should not be squandered. Ahead of his visit to New Delhi, Ackerman said he strongly supports the nuclear deal and looks forward to India completing its "internal processes" so that the "historic" accord can be approved by the American Congress.

OneIndia News