July is not deadline for N-deal, says US Govt

White House Press Secretary Dana Perino was asked to comment on a statement made by Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Joseph Biden during his recent visit to New Delhi, were he said the nuclear deal has to be taken up in Congress by June and ratified by July.

Any new US administration will "renegotiate" the deal, Biden had said.

But Perino said, "We have a little bit more time than that, obviously, on the calendar before the end of the president's term. But if there's internal pressure from inside India for them to move more quickly, I think that's good. And I saw a report today that said that there are some elements within India that are very supportive of getting the deal done."

When asked if President George W Bush was in touch with New Delhi to push for the nuclear deal, Perino replied: "We are in touch with different levels of government throughout - here at the National Security Council and the State