India on Friday reacted cautiously to the passage of a bill by the United States Senate to implement the Indo-US nuclear deal, with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh saying there was still a long way to go for the pact to become a 'living reality.'
"I welcome the decision of the US Senate. But we still have a long way to go before nuclear cooperation between India and the US becomes a living reality," Dr Singh told the HT Leadership Summit in New Delhi.
Noting that aspects of the two bills passed by the US House of Representatives and the Senate were 'not identical,' he said the process of reconciling them would have to take into account India's concerns.
In an equally guarded reaction, External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee said India will await the final version of the legislation 'before drawing any conclusion.'
"We shall have to ensure that the final text of the bill is in conformity with the parameters set out in the July 18, 2005 agreement (reached in Washington between Dr Singh and President George W Bush)," he told reporters.
United Progressive Alliance chairperson Sonia Gandhi made it clear that India will not accept anything that went beyond the July 18 agreement. She said India will welcome the final legislation only if all areas not acceptable to it were excluded.
UPA ally Communist Party of India (Marxist), which has voiced strong reservations over the deal, asked the government to stick to its commitment given in Parliament and not compromise on concerns voiced by it.
The opposition Bharatiya Janata Party said India must retain its right to revise its deterrence policy keeping in mind the security scenario in the region.
