President George W Bush [Images] Monday said the landmark Indo-US civil nuclear agreement was part of US efforts to help other countries, such as India, get away from dependence on fossil fuels.

• Indo-US nuke tango

"We've got to get off Middle Eastern oil. And therefore, we need to stay focused on research and development initiatives that help us get away from fossil fuels, but also helps countries like India diversify away from fossil fuels," Bush said during a question and answer session at the School of Advanced International Studies of the Johns Hopkins University.

"And that's why the agreement I reached with India is a very important agreement," Bush remarked, referring to the civilian nuclear energy agreement signed by the two countries and whose formalisation now is before the Senate and the House of Representatives who would have to authorise changes to the 1954 Atomic Energy Act.