But the proposed nuclear pact has energized them like nothing before.
It is one of the signatories of the nuclear non-proliferation pact since 1992 and a member of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) since 1957.
China may be applying quiet pressure on North Korea to return to the nuclear pact and give up its nuclear aspirations, which have alarmed the entire region.
Plans to cut the estate tax and raise the minimum wage have floundered, and an important nuclear pact with India sought by the White House is not on track to clear Congress.
Two days later, India and France inked a similar nuclear pact making France the first country to have such an agreement with India.
Unfortunately, everything sets it up to be just the opposite, starting with the fact that it is being overshadowed by Mr. Bush's misbegotten nuclear pact with Pakistan's blood enemy, India.
A nuclear pact would help India with power for its enormous civilian energy needs while allowing it to keep its nuclear weapons.
The United States agreed to a nuclear pact with the world's largest democracy, a South Asian country that possesses nuclear weapons.
And, indeed, the United States has already been talking trade with Brazil, and its nuclear pact with India could open the door to economic talks.
September 21 - A nuclear non-proliferation pact is signed by 15 countries, including the United States and the Soviet Union.