US President George W. Bush, left, and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh

The nuclear cooperation pact between India and the United States has sparked a mixed reaction in Washington and abroad.

International Atomic Energy Agency Director General Mohamed ElBaradei praised the agreement, saying it would bring India closer as an important partner in the non-proliferation group of countries.

But some U.S. lawmakers criticized the deal, saying the agreement that could give India access to U.S. civilian nuclear technology would undermine the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.

India has not signed the treaty, which restricts the sharing of some nuclear technology with non-member nations, and drew widespread international criticism for conducting nuclear weapons tests as recently as 1998.

Full details of the nuclear cooperation pact have not been released, but the agreement must still be approved by Congress before taking effect.

President Bush acknowledged Thursday that hard work still needs to be done to gain the necessary approval in Congress.