India's foreign minister will visit Washington next week for talks with US leaders, a statement said Saturday, amid uncertainty over a nuclear deal between the two countries.
Pranab Mukherjee will "review of all aspects of the India-US bilateral relationship" during talks with his counterpart Condolezza Rice, the Indian foreign ministry statement said, without giving further details.
During his stay between March 24-25, Mukherjee is also "scheduled to call on the US President, George W. Bush, and meet the US National Security Adviser, Stephen Hadley," the statement added. Mukherjee's visit comes amid a deadlock between his government and its Communist allies over implementing a civilian nuclear deal which seeks to bring India into the global nuclear civilian market and overhaul its US ties. The government says the pact is needed to provide new fuel sources to keep the energy-hungry nation's economy growing, but the communists say the deal will ally the country too closely with Washington.