Washington: The India Caucus has urged the Bush administration to insist on Pakistan signing the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty (NPT) and dismantling its nuclear arsenal.

"President Musharraf must now acquiesce to signing the nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty, and the White House must insist on this," US Congressman Joseph Crowley, Co-Chairman of the India Caucus, said.

"The signing of the treaty would mean the dismantling of Pakistan's nuclear weapons arsenal and allowing international oversight of Pakistan's Government-run Khan laboratories, the centre of the Pakistani proliferation network," Crowley said.

Raising questions about the Pakistan Government pardoning nuclear scientist Abdul Qadeer Khan for his proliferation activities, he said, "This sends a message to people in similar situations that sharing and assisting in the proliferation of nuclear secrets and weapons is acceptable."

"What will prevent this from happening again in Pakistan?" he asked.

Crowley said, "Under President Musharraf's leadership, Pakistan has made some valuable contributions to the war on terror, especially through apprehending a number of leading al-Qaeda figures. In the long term, US interests and ultimately, Pakistani interests will be best served by a fuller commitment to preventing the spread of weapons of mass destruction."