The Indo-US civilian nuclear deal is unlikely to be concluded before the Bush administration leaves office early next year due to "a lack of action" in India in recent months, a media report said in New York on Saturday.
Indian Parliament would need to ratify New Delhi's commitment to the agreement by June in order for Congress to have the time to pass the nuclear pact into US law before President George W Bush leaves office, The Wall Street Journal noted, citing State Department officials.
"But a lack of action in India in recent months is leading many in Washington to believe the Bush administration has run out of time," the paper said.
Some US officials, it said, believe the Indian government already is looking ahead to a new US administration.
"It is not unusual as one approaches the end of an administration for foreign nations to look at proposed agreements and see a much larger benefit to concluding it under the incoming president," a US official working on proliferation issues was quoted as saying.
The paper also noted that some Indian security analysts have argued that India can get better energy deals elsewhere.
There are signs, it said, the Indian government is hedging its bets among a diverse group of energy suppliers.
Last month, India hosted President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of Iran to help spur a number of new energy projects, it added.
Other countries, the journal said, also have lent support with the goal of bringing India into a nuclear-regulatory regimen and selling it fuel as well as equipment.
Business communities of both India and the US have thrown their weight behind the agreement, largely because of the anticipated boon to trade.
In another deal, the paper noted, Boeing Lockheed Martin and other US firms are vying to win bids to help build 126 fighter jets for Indian Air Force. The deal is valued at an estimated $6-8 billion.
