The United States and India are to continue talks on Friday in New Delhi on a bilateral nuclear deal.
U.S. Under Secretary of State Nicholas Burns, who is in New Delhi for the talks, said it is uncertain if the deal will be finalized before President Bush visits India next week.
Burns made the comment Thursday after meeting Indian Foreign Secretary Shyam Saran. Burns said both sides want to complete the negotiations, but there are differences that need to be worked out. He did not elaborate.
President Bush said in a roundtable interview with Indian journalists Wednesday that he hopes to have an agreement to bring back, so he can start selling it to Congress.
Under the deal, which must be approved by Congress, India would gain access to long-denied U.S. nuclear technology in exchange for including some of its reactors on a list of civilian facilities that would be subject to international inspections.
Some U.S. lawmakers oppose the deal, saying it could undermine the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, which India has not signed.