US Congressmen seek to oppose Indian nuke deal

If the resolution passed, it would signal lawmakers' "disapproval" of the July 18 deal, which has generated strong opposition from non-proliferation advocates because it would give India access to previously banned technology.

"The administration's move to launch nuclear cooperation with India has grave security implications for South Asia and the entire world," said Democratic Rep. Edward Markey of Massachusetts, who introduced the resolution with Republican Rep. Fred Upton of Michigan last week.

Markey, co-chair of the Bipartisan Task Force on Non-proliferation, is a member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, as is Upton.

"Supplying nuclear fuel to countries that are not party to the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty derails the delicate balance that has been established between nuclear nations and limits our capacity to insist that other nations continue to follow that important non-proliferation policy," he said.

"We cannot break the nuclear rules established in the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty and demand that everyone else play by them," he added in a statement.

A congressional resolution is a formal statement of opinion on an issue but is not binding.

For 25 years, the United States led the global fight to deny India access to nuclear technology because it rejected the treaty, developed nuclear weapons and tested them.