ID :
18403
Mon, 09/08/2008 - 10:47
Auther :
Shortlink :
http://m.oananews.org//node/18403
The shortlink copeid
Congress should not rush through nuclear deal: Berman
New York, Sept 7 (PTI) The US Congress should not rush through the Indo-US nuclear deal until the Bush Administration proved that it did not cut any "side deals" at the N.S.G. meeting to get the India-specific waiver, Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee Howard Berman has warned.
Berman, a well-known opponent of the Indo-US nuclear deal, said he would not consider any "expedited" timetable for considering the Indo-US agreement until the Bush administration provides him with more information about the negotiations held at the Nuclear Suppliers Group in Vienna.
The Democrat had raised a political storm in India by
releasing the 26-page responses by the State Department to 45
questions on the Indo-US nuclear deal posed by his predecessor
Tom Lantos way back in October last year.
The US position in the letter appeared at variance with
New Delhi's interpretation of some key clauses of the Indo-US
nuclear deal.
Berman told the New York Times that he wants to check
that the Bush administration did not cut any side deals with
45-member grouping to get their backing.
He said he wanted to ensure, for instance, that the
United States did not say any countries could sell nuclear
technology to India that the US is currently prohibited from
selling.
"Ultimately, the burden was on the White House to
convince Congress that the nuclear pact needed to be
authorised in a 'rushed' fashion," he said.
Barman's comments came as Secretary of State Condoleezza
Rice said time was short and she has talked to the heads of
the Committees of both the houses of Congress for pushing
through the deal.
Despite some lawmakers like Berman expressing
reservations, even the opponents acknowledge that should the
White House manage to force a vote, the nuclear agreement is
likely to be approved, the Times said.
Under current law, Congress must be in session a full 30
days to consider the nuclear deal. But Congressional officials
were quoted as saying that the White House might be able to
work with lawmakers to circumvent this provision and expedite
a vote.
A potentially more significant hurdle for the White
House, the Times said, is that a Democratic Congress might
not want to give President Bush a significant victory during
his waning days in office.
White House officials have long hoped that the deal could
be part of Bush's foreign policy legacy.
Lawmakers in late 2006 voted overwhelmingly to support
the White House's plan to sell the civilian reactors to India,
but the paper noted, that was when Congress was still in
Republican hands.
Congress granted provisional approval at that time and
was required to vote again after a nod from the N.S.G.
Ellen O Tauscher, a California Democrat, told the paper
that the nuclear agreement was a "very, very bad deal," but
said since the 2006 vote indicated that a large part of the
House of Representatives was inclined to approve the pact and
it would be difficult to scuttle the deal at this point. PTI
Berman, a well-known opponent of the Indo-US nuclear deal, said he would not consider any "expedited" timetable for considering the Indo-US agreement until the Bush administration provides him with more information about the negotiations held at the Nuclear Suppliers Group in Vienna.
The Democrat had raised a political storm in India by
releasing the 26-page responses by the State Department to 45
questions on the Indo-US nuclear deal posed by his predecessor
Tom Lantos way back in October last year.
The US position in the letter appeared at variance with
New Delhi's interpretation of some key clauses of the Indo-US
nuclear deal.
Berman told the New York Times that he wants to check
that the Bush administration did not cut any side deals with
45-member grouping to get their backing.
He said he wanted to ensure, for instance, that the
United States did not say any countries could sell nuclear
technology to India that the US is currently prohibited from
selling.
"Ultimately, the burden was on the White House to
convince Congress that the nuclear pact needed to be
authorised in a 'rushed' fashion," he said.
Barman's comments came as Secretary of State Condoleezza
Rice said time was short and she has talked to the heads of
the Committees of both the houses of Congress for pushing
through the deal.
Despite some lawmakers like Berman expressing
reservations, even the opponents acknowledge that should the
White House manage to force a vote, the nuclear agreement is
likely to be approved, the Times said.
Under current law, Congress must be in session a full 30
days to consider the nuclear deal. But Congressional officials
were quoted as saying that the White House might be able to
work with lawmakers to circumvent this provision and expedite
a vote.
A potentially more significant hurdle for the White
House, the Times said, is that a Democratic Congress might
not want to give President Bush a significant victory during
his waning days in office.
White House officials have long hoped that the deal could
be part of Bush's foreign policy legacy.
Lawmakers in late 2006 voted overwhelmingly to support
the White House's plan to sell the civilian reactors to India,
but the paper noted, that was when Congress was still in
Republican hands.
Congress granted provisional approval at that time and
was required to vote again after a nod from the N.S.G.
Ellen O Tauscher, a California Democrat, told the paper
that the nuclear agreement was a "very, very bad deal," but
said since the 2006 vote indicated that a large part of the
House of Representatives was inclined to approve the pact and
it would be difficult to scuttle the deal at this point. PTI
