In brief remarks that prefaced his scheduled address on combating international crime in Washington on Tuesday, Clinton bristled visibly while declaring that India's tests not only threatened the security of the region, the tests ``directly challenge'' the firm international consensus to stop proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.

``I call upon India to announce that it will conduct no further tests and sign the CTBT now and without conditions,'' Clinton said, in his first direct remarks about the tests.

He also urged India's neighbours ``not to follow suit, not to follow down the path of a dangerous arms race''. The President left no one in doubt that sanctions against India were imminent.

``Our laws have stringent provisions... in response to nuclear tests by non-nuclear nationsand I intend to implement them fully,'' he said.

The President did not take any questions, precluding any inquiry about his scheduled November visit to India. However, a top White House official said on Monday that President Clinton's plan to visit India in November is still on despite the flap over the triple nuclear test, even as there were indications that Washington might go easy on the sanctions if New Delhi committed itself to signing the test ban treaty.

``We don't plan to change our plans. That's poor grammar... Our plans remain unchanged,'' National Security Adviser Samuel Berger said, when asked if India's nuclear test on Monday put at risk the President's scheduled trip.

Berger's clarification affirmed the emerging notion that despite India's aggravating nuclear tests and the initial odium it is inviting, the Clinton administration may be ready to engage New Delhi in an effort to draw it into a non-proliferation regime. The White House led the way in announcing this strategy of engagement.Berger reiterated that India and the United States are the two largest democracies in the world and shared an enormous amount of common interest. ``I think we have a better chance at de-escalating or at least slowing down these kinds of actions if we remain engaged than if we don't,'' Berger said in remarks that created quite a stir in the community that monitors proliferation activity.

Analysts immediately read it as a line that sought to strike a deal with India, possibly during Clinton's November visit. Asked if it was conceivable that the US might not impose sanctions if India signed the CTBT, state department spokesman James Rubin said ``it would certainly be a welcome development if India were now to announce its intention to sign.''

In fact, after the initial rap on the knuckles, administration officials were quite solicitous of the reasoning behind India's tests.

James Rubin twice said the US understood that India's attitude towards nuclear non-proliferation are strongly influenced by itssecurity perceptions.