Saturday, June 17 2006 10:39 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Washington: In his strongest ever endorsement of the civil nuclear energy agreement between India and the United States, a top US Senator today (June 17, 2006) warned the Congress against rejecting or delaying the deal at the risk of losing a 'critical opportunity' of expanding beyond America's Cold War structures to include dynamic nations like India.

"I believe it is critical that the US Congress come to conclusions about President Bush's proposed civilian nuclear agreement with India," Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee Richard Lugar said at the Naval War College in Newport.

"The nuclear agreement represents the most important strategic diplomatic initiative undertaken by President Bush and by concluding the pact and the far-reaching set of cooperative agreements that accompany it, US would reap long-term benefits in the way of enhancing the core of its foreign policy, powering it with new diplomatic relations and global security," Lugar said.

He warned that a Congressional rejection of the agreement or an open-ended delay risks wasting a critical opportunity to begin to expand beyond our Cold War alliance structures to include dynamic nations with whom the interests of America are converging.

"Many Members of Congress, including myself, have been studying the implications of the nuclear pact on non-proliferation policy. India has not signed the NPT and it has developed and tested nuclear weapons," he said.

"We should be concerned about the precedent set by this action and we must ensure that this agreement does not undercut our own responsibilities under the Non-proliferation Treaty", Lugar said.

"Both Houses of Congress are working through language that would guide our policy toward India. I believe that we can help solidify New Delhi's commitments to implement strong export controls, separate its civilian nuclear infrastructure from its weapons programme and place civilian facilities under IAEA safeguards", the lawmaker from Indiana said.

"This agreement also would be a powerful incentive for India to cooperate closely with the US in stopping proliferation and to abstain from further nuclear weapons tests. These outcomes could represent important advancements for non-proliferation policy," he noted.

Recognising India's growing clout, Lugar said, "The Administration's declaration that we would welcome India's advancement as a major economic and political player on the world stage represents a strategic decision to invest political capital in a country with a vibrant democracy and rapidly growing economy."

"With a well-educated middle class that is larger than the entire US population, India can be an anchor of stability in Asia and an engine of global economic growth," he said adding that India can also be a key partner in countering global extremist trends.

"Both of our countries understand the importance of opposing violent movements through the promotion of religious pluralism, tolerance and democratic freedoms. As a country with well-entrenched democratic traditions and the world's second largest Muslim population, India can set an example of a multi-religious and multi-cultural democracy in an otherwise volatile region," Lugar said.