Despite the lobby opposing the Indo-US civil nuclear deal raising its ante following the North Korean nuclear tests, the Bush Administration has “reassured” India that it was “committed” to the agreement made in March. Like Britain, the US too has refused to draw a parallel between the two nuclear programs.

To clarify any such doubt, US Under-Secretary of State for Political Affairs Nicholas Burns called up Foreign Secretary Shiv Shankar Menon and his immediate predecessor Shyam Saran, India’s point man for the nuke deal, to convey the Bush administration’s “determination” to fulfil the commitment made to India this March.

“I have been in touch with Saran and Menon over the last week to assure that the US wants to go forward on all of the definite initiatives that President Bush and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh talked about in New Delhi,” Burns said after a meeting at the Council on Foreign Relations here. Reiterating the US stand that there is a “world of difference” between the Indian and North Korean nuclear programs, Burns said the administration is working with the leadership to “see” if it would be possible to have a vote in the lame duck session.

Meanwhile, State Department officials said they were ready to brief Congressional leaders again. “Should Congress express its concern or questions regarding the North Korea tests, we would certainly move forward to reassure it regarding the understanding we have with India and why the situation is so different from North Korea,” they said.