An unconditional NSG waiver for India appeared to be an uphill task on the eve of the 45-nation grouping’s crucial meeting with a few sceptic countries holding confabulations among themselves in Vienna on Wednesday.

The countries, which include New Zealand, Austria, Ireland and Switzerland, are understood to have discussed the strategy to be adopted at the two-day NSG meeting called to consider whether India should be allowed to resume civil nuclear trade with the international community.

These countries continue to nurse apprehensions with regard to the waiver as they feel it will compromise the global non-proliferation system.

Compounding the problems for India was the disclosure of US State Department documents which make clear Washington’s emphasis on denying New Delhi the right to reprocess and snap nuclear cooperation if India conducts atomic tests.

This document could be used by the critical NSG countries to insist on incorporating such provisions in the waiver of the grouping.

The United States is trying to push these countries not to block the waiver and the effort is still on.

The US has deputed Under Secretary of State William Burns to the NSG meeting to demonstrate its keenness to ensure that the exemption is granted to India.

Foreign Secretary Shivshankar Menon, who is in the US, will come here directly. He will be joined by Prime Minister’s Special Envoy Shyam Saran, R B Grover, Director, Strategic Affairs in the Department of Atomic Energy and some other officials of the Ministry of External Affairs.

Though India is not a member of the NSG, the delegation led by Menon will be camping here to meet envoys of the NSG countries, if necessary, to make further efforts to persuade them.

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