Japan, a key member of the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), on Tuesaday was non-committal on whether it would support India's case at the 45-nation grouping even as it asked New Delhi to sign the NPT and CTBT.

After his talks with External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee who sought Japan's support, Foreign Minister Masshiko Koumura said Tokyo understands India's energy needs but wants to be sure that Indo-US nuclear deal will not undermine non-proliferation efforts.

Mukherjee sought to allay the concerns, saying the Indo-US nuclear deal is "limited to peaceful energy programme" and asserted that New Delhi has an impeccable record on the non-proliferation front despite not being a signatory to the NPT.

"We seek cooperation of the international community. We are aware of Japan's sensitivity. In view of that I reiterated our firm commitment to total disarmament and strict adherence to conditions of non-proliferation as enshrined in various treaties," Mukherjee said at a joint press conference with Koumura.

He said though India is not a signatory to NPT or any other pact, India fulfills "all major conditionalities"
required for non-proliferation.

Koumura, while noting that Japan is the only one to have suffered an atomic bomb, said his country needs to be sure that the Indo-US nuclear deal is "satisfactory" in the sense that it will further strengthen disarmament and not undermine it.

He said Japan would "join the discussions which will be held in future", apparently referring to the August 21-22 meeting of NSG to consider waiver for India.

Earlier, US State Department's Acting Deputy Spokesman Gonzalo R Gallegos had hinted that the Bush administration was expected to present the US-India civil nuclear agreement to the US Congress around September 8 after the deal’s endorsement by the NSG.

Gallegos had said that since the International Atomic Energy Agency had cleared the deal, the US would discuss this issue with the members of the NSG, and it hoped to get a positive result out of that sometime in the next month.

And then, hopefully, the deal will be presented before the Congress on or about September 8.

He also hinted that the government would look to get congressional seal of approval for 123 Agreement between India and US before the session ends on September 26.

Gallegos also reiterated the government's all out support for the deal saying that "We've stated often our support for this deal and we believe that it's important not only for the bilateral relationship, but also for nuclear security to the rest of the world."

While that would have lifted the Indian government, getting the NSG clearance will clearly prove tricky as non-proliferation concerns are the top priority of some key members of the group.