“Whatever be the reservations that have been expressed about our relations with the US, no other friendly country, member of the NSG has the necessary standing to lead the process of opening up the existing multilateral regime to accommodate India,” he said.

“The US is in a unique position precisely because it initiated these restrictive regimes in the first place, and also because it remains the pre-eminent source of new sensitive technologies,” he added.

Defence analyst K Subrahmanyam said the nuclear deal was not an either-or-choice for India.

C Uday Bhaskar stressed the need for “public activism” on making the leaders and the political class aware of the benefits of the nuclear deal.