``No decision has been taken on signing the CTBT. It will depend on future talks (with key interlocutors),'' Vajpayee told reporters on his way back from Paris at the end of a nine-day visit to New York and France.

Later, on arrival at Delhi airport, the Prime Minister told newspersons: ``Certain points are yet to be cleared,'' but did not elaborate.

``By announcing a unilateral moratorium on conducting further nuclear tests, India has already accepted the substance of CTBT,'' he said.

Earlier, recalling his address to the United Nations General Assembly session, he said India expects that the 44 other countries who have to sign the treaty would adhere to it ``without conditions''.

Indicating that there were several hurdles in the way of the CTBT coming intooperation, he said, it was difficult to say even what stand the United States Senate, which is having strong reservations, would take on the issue in the coming months.

Vajpayee said some countries had signed the treaty but not ratified it as was mandatory under the treaty. On the issue of transfer of nuclear technology too, there was sharp divergence of opinion among the key countries, he said.

Asked whether the US had offered any concession to India for agreeing to move forward on the CTBT issue, he said New Delhi was not indulging in any bargaining.

India, he said, was not, as reports suggest, pressing for lifting of sanctions imposed against it. ``We can withstand the fall-out of sanctions.''

``But'' he asked ``if sanctions continue, how could there be normal atmosphere (for successful completion of talks with key interlocutors)?''

Vajpayee, in his UN address, had stated that India is engaged in discussions with key interlocutors on issues including the CTBT and is prepared to bring thesediscussions to a successful conclusion so that the entry into force of CTBT is not delayed beyond September 1999.

Considerable significance is being attached to the sixth round of Indo-US parleys later this month between Prime Minister's special envoy Jaswant Singh and US Deputy Secretary of State Strobe Talbott on the nuclear issue and disarmament.

Vajpayee said his trip to the UN was not under normal circumstances as the entire world was watching with keen interest what India has to say on CTBT in the aftermath of the nuclear explosions.

There is a marked difference in the opinion of several leading countries now than what it was in May when they were critical of the tests, the Prime Minister said, adding more and more countries and even public opinion-makers in the US are now accepting that India's genuine security concerns had led to the nuclear tests.

During his interaction with leaders on the sidelines of the UN session and with French President Jacques Chirac and other leaders, Vajpayee said hehad outlined the steps taken by India in the post-Pokhran period including announcement of voluntary moratorium on further tests, New Delhi's readiness to participate in the ongoing negotiations on the fissile materials cut off treaty at the Conference on Disarmament in Geneva and strictly abiding its obligation not to transfer nuclear weapons or related know-how to other countries.

Significantly, he said, but for the traditional five nuclear-weapons states (P-5), most of the other countries had agreed that the Pokhran tests had brought back to centrestage the question of nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation.