New Delhi, July 2: India’s ambassador to the US, Ronen Sen, is coming to New Delhi for consultations with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and external affairs minister Pranab Mukherjee.

Sen’s visit assumes significance in the light of plans by national security adviser M.K. Narayanan and foreign secretary Shiv Shankar Menon to visit the US in mid-July to continue the discussions on the nuclear deal.

There is also some talk of Mukherjee going to the US, although that has not been finalised yet. The foreign minister is leaving for Ethiopia tomorrow.

Narayanan will meet his counterpart, US national security adviser Steve Hadley. They had last met on the margins of the G8 summit in Heilingendamm, Germany, about a month ago when they discussed India’s proposal to set up a dedicated facility to store spent fuel.

Sen’s inputs will help the leadership assess the mood in the US ahead of the visit by Narayanan and Menon.

Key to the talks is India’s belief that it must be able to reprocess the spent fuel, which the US has so far not been willing to concede. The Indian side will reassure their counterparts that the reprocessing will also be done in fast breeder reactors that are fully safeguarded.

Narayanan and Menon are also expected to meet secretary of state Condoleezza Rice, and perhaps President George W. Bush.

Sources said the Narayanan-Menon visit was being seen as a “make-or-break” effort. The Indian side will again push for the right to reprocess fuel. If the Americans agree on reprocessing, Narayanan and Menon could wrap up the negotiations during the trip.