India may become full NSG member by year-end, says US official

We are confident that India would be a full member of NSG regime by end of year, says official of Obama administration

As a strong China-led opposition stopped India from entering into the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), the United States has said there is a 'path forward' for India to become a full member of the elite atomic trading club.

"We are confident that we have got a path forward by the end of this year," a top Obama administration official said on Friday.

"It needs some work. But we are confident that India would be a full member of the (NSG) regime by the end of the year," the official told on condition of anonymity.



The statement came hours after the group’s plenary meeting ended in Seoul with no decision on India’s membership in face of strong China-led opposition.

Refusing to divulge the discussions and opposition to India's membership within the 48-member grouping, the official said details of the internal deliberations are confidential.

"But the US strongly believes in India's membership in the NSG and the Obama administration has worked closely with New Delhi and other countries on this issue," the official said.

The NSG met this week in Seoul, but China said it would not bend the rules and allow India membership, as it had not signed the Non Proliferation Treaty (NPT). “Applicant countries must be signatories of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of nuclear weapons (NPT),” Wang Qun, the head of arms control department in China’s Foreign Ministry, was quoted as saying in Seoul on Thursday night.



Later, a US Democratic hailed the decision of the NSG to refuse India’s entry to the elite atomic trading club. “Today, the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) reaffirmed its strong support for the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) by refraining from admitting India,” Democratic Senator Edward Markey from Massachusetts said in a statement.

This article originally appeared on The Times of India.