E-Paper
Unscheduled PM-Rice meeting raises hopes
Senior officials confirmed the Rice-PM meeting and said that there were certain issues that were cliff hangers which could well be clinched when they talk.
US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice will have an unscheduled meeting with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Monday, raising expectations of a major announcement after he meets President George W Bush at the White House later in the day.
The meeting is taking place at the instance of the State Department.
Senior officials confirmed the Rice-Manmohan Singh meeting and said that there were certain issues that were "cliff hangers" which could well be clinched when they talk.
The officials refused to divulge what these were. One of them said simply: "Wait and see."
Among the critical issues, from New Delhi's standpoint, are resumption of civilian nuclear cooperation with India, support for India's candidature as a permanent member in the UN Security Council and acknowledgment of Pakistan's dubious role as a fountainhead of global terrorism.
Rice has a scheduled meeting with Manmohan Singh and other members of his delegation at the State Department later in the day that extends till lunch.
This is Manmohan Singh's first official visit to the US since he became the Prime Minister last year. On his way to Washington, the Prime Minister declared that India attached the highest importance to strategic ties with the US.
