By IANS
New Delhi : Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Thursday said he was expecting some "forward movement" in India's nuclear negotiations with the US when National Security Adviser M.K. Narayanan goes to Washington mid-July to resolve "two or three" issues that are blocking the bilateral agreement.
"There will be some forward movement. However, no deadline has been set," Manmohan Singh told women journalists at 7 Race Course residence when asked about the fate of the 123 bilateral civil nuclear cooperation agreement the two sides are negotiating.
Narayanan and Foreign Secretary Shivshankar Menon will go to Washington July 16 in an attempt to break the impasse over India's insistence on reprocessing right and issues relating to nuclear testing.
US ambassador to India David C. Mulford had set a positive tone for the forthcoming round of nuclear talks Wednesday when he said India and the US were "nearing the end" of civil nuclear negotiations.
During the talks, India will insist on getting prior US consent for reprocessing of US-origin or US-obligated fuel and may propose setting up a stand-alone facility for reprocessing spent fuel and placing it under international safeguards, knowledgeable sources said.
Washington is not ready to grant the reprocessing right yet.
India is also expected to insist on getting iron-clad fuel supply guarantees from the US for the imported reactors. The 123 agreement will pave the way for the resumption of civil nuclear commerce between the two countries.