Amid continuing uncertainty over the fate of the India-United States civilian nuclear agreement, the US has said that it is too early to express disappointment about it. US authorities also expressed hope that the two sides 'can get it done'.
White House spokesperson Tony Fratto said that the Bush administration remained committed to the civil nuclear agreement despite signs that the Manmohan Singh government may balk due to opposition at home from Left parties.
"We don't believe we can close the book on that yet. I think there's still some work to do. We want to work with India," he said.
Fratto said the US understands that, "the Indian government has to deal with their local politics, just like we frequently have to deal with our local politics in these kinds of issues".
"So we want to stay encouraged. We want to continue our dialogue with Indian authorities," he said.
The spokesman said he did not know what exactly transpired between US President George W Bush and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh during their recent phone conversation on the nuclear issue.
"But I can assure you that the President (Bush) would have reiterated our commitment to that agreement and our interest in having it accomplished," he added.
Asked if Bush was disappointed with the possibility of the Indian side not going ahead with the deal, the White House official replied, "I think it's too early to express disappointment. I think we have some work to do and I think we can get it done".
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