Senate panel votes for India nuclear deal

Indian and U.S. national flags flutter in front of the Presidential Palace in New Delhi in this February 2006 file photo. A U.S. Senate panel voted on Tuesday to approve the U.S.-India civil nuclear cooperation agreement without a controversial proposal that would give Congress more influence over future deals.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A U.S. Senate panel voted on Tuesday to approve the U.S.-India civil nuclear cooperation agreement without a controversial proposal that would give Congress more influence over future deals.

The Senate Foreign Relations Committee voted 19-2 in favor of the deal, which would end the three-decade ban on U.S. nuclear trade with India and is seen by the White House as the cornerstone of a new strategic partnership with New Delhi.

Critics believe the deal undermines efforts to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons and sets a precedent allowing other nations to seek to buy nuclear technology without submitting to the full range of global non-proliferation safeguards.

The bill text approved did not include language advocated by an influential congressman to give the U.S. Congress greater say over future such agreements.

House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Howard Berman last week proposed changing U.S. law so any future agreements would become effective only if Congress votes to approve them, sources familiar with the matter said.

Such agreements now typically go into effect unless Congress rejects them during a 60-day period. As a result, the law is now tilted in favor of the agreements going through.

Berman asked for the change in the Atomic Energy Act in exchange for speeding up a vote on the U.S.-India civil nuclear cooperation agreement. The fuel and technology deal would help India meet rising energy demand without aggravating climate change and open a market worth billions of dollars.

U.S. lawmakers are racing to finish their work this week, including a massive Bush administration financial bailout plan for Wall Street, so they can campaign for the Nov. 4 election.

It is unclear whether the measure can get passed during this week and, if it does, whether Berman's proposal may be included.

House Foreign Affairs Committee spokeswoman Lynne Weil declined direct comment on the details of Berman's proposal, but stressed that he supported nuclear cooperation with India and was discussing ways to expedite approval of the deal.

A senior U.S. official who spoke on condition that he not be named said that the Bush administration was still in negotiations with members of Congress and hoped to assuage their concerns and to secure approval this year.

"I don't know where we are going to come out of this but certainly ... the spirit is positive and I think there is a chance we can come through this and win congressional approval in this session in a way that addresses many, if not all, of the concerns that have been raised," said the official.