NEW DELHI: There's "still work to be done" before India and the United States can clinch an agreement on civil nuclear cooperation, U.S. President George W. Bush has said in an interview days before he arrives in New Delhi on a state visit on March 1.

Talking to Doordarshan on Friday, Mr. Bush conceded that the nuclear agreement was a tough issue. "It's a tough issue for the Prime Minister [Manmohan Singh], I understand that, and it's a tough issue for me ... both of us have to convince our respective people it's in the [ir] interest to have a civilian nuclear programme supported by the United States and India, as well as a civilian nuclear programme that's separate from a military programme in India.

"We've just got to continue to come up with an agreement that both of us can live with. But the relationship is broader than just the civilian nuclear issue ... it's also very important for India to understand our concerns about making sure that there's a ... civilian programme [which] is separate from the military, and there's the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) safeguards. And again, we're breaking some new ground. I'm not surprised that it's difficult to reach a consensus. And we'll keep trying and working at it," he said.

UNI reports from Washington:

Replying to a question, Mr. Bush, who is slated to visit Islamabad at the conclusion of his three-day stay in India, said he would raise the issue of dismantling terrorist training camps in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) with Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf.

"On my trip to Pakistan, I will, of course, talk about terrorist activities, the need to dismantle terrorist training camps and the need to protect innocent human lives." Observing that Washington's ties with India and Pakistan were at an "interesting moment," he said, "There was a [time] when America was close to Pakistan. And now President Musharraf understands that we need to have a good relationship with India and vice versa and [Prime Minister Manmohan] Singh understands ... We have a good relationship with both."

Describing the war on terrorism as universal, Mr. Bush said, "It is very important for all of us to stop the advance in the goals of these terrorists."

He said he was looking forward to his visit to India and the main purpose was to open up markets between the two countries.

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