NEW DELHI, March 28: The United States did not inform India it was giving Pakistan an elite military status as it did not know if Islamabad was "interested", the US envoy here was quoted as saying on Sunday.

Pakistan was designated a "major non-NATO ally" during a South Asian tour earlier this month by US Secretary of State Colin Powell, making it eligible for priority delivery of military supplies.

But US ambassador to India David Mulford told Outlook India magazine that New Delhi received no advance warning partly because "it was unclear whether Pakistan was really interested in the issue".

"Because we are talking about something here that isn't absolutely a huge strategic issue. It is a relatively small item," he said. At the time India's foreign office hit out at Powell, who gave no forewarning of the move during his visit to New Delhi two days before flying onto Pakistan, saying the decision had "significant implications for India-US relations."

But Mr Mulford said: "I think till (Powell) got to Pakistan we didn't think it was an issue that would come to a head, and then I think all of a sudden it did in the context of the situation out there at that time."

Despite warming ties with the United States, India does not have the same special status, which is also enjoyed by close US allies such as Israel and Japan.

"The India-US relationship is one that stands on its own. Just as the US relationship with Pakistan stands on its own. Not every issue has to be seen through the prism of the other relationship," Mr Mulford said. -AFP