US lawmakers pledge support for deal

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Washington DC: In a rare display of support for the Indo-US nuclear agreement, several republican and democratic lawmakers said they would vote for the legislation next week.

At an event organised by the US-India Business alliance - a pro-India lobby group, Congress Democratic Representative Tom Lantos provided a definite timeline.

Lantos says, “This legislation enjoys the support of the administration and if both countries act responsibility we may be able to have this legislation pass by sometime the 3rd or 4th week of July.”

A Bill drafted by the House International Relations Committee chairman Henry Hyde and Lantos is scheduled for a vote next Tuesday. Lantos would not disclose whether the Bill contained any major amendments, but said it did not have any deal breakers.

“This agreement would allow India to meet its surging energy requirement in an environmentally friendly way further increasing supply of energy in India and make no mistake about it ultimately directly helps consumers at the pump here at home in the US as well," Lantos added.

The Senate Foreign Relations Committee is expected to vote on its version of the legislation within the next few weeks.

Just when it looked like the Indo-US nuclear agreement was falling off the edge, strong support from lawmakers seems to have the turned the tide.

Even though a crucial vote on the deal has been postponed to next week, it looks like the agreement will win congressional approval.