New Delhi, Aug. 18 :    New Delhi, Aug. 18:  A meeting between Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and US President George W. Bush is being planned on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York next month. The date of the meeting, which is being finalised, is likely to be either on September 24 or 25. If the meeting does take place, it will be the first face-to-face encounter between the two leaders. During his visit to the US last year, Vajpayee did not get a chance to meet Bush as he was busy campaigning for the presidential polls. But the two had a telephonic conversation in which they stressed on strengthening bilateral relations. The American President, as is the custom, will be the second speaker at the UN General Assembly on September 24, the first day of the session. Vajpayee is scheduled to speak on the next day. Both sides are keen that a meeting between the two leaders takes place on the sidelines.. Agency reports quoted US deputy secretary of state Richard Armitage as saying that the US envisages a 'robust' relationship with India as there were 'a lot of reasons' for the two countries to engage with each other. 'India is a nuclear power. There are a lot of reasons we ought to engage with India, and we are going to,' Armitage said. 'It would be unnatural for the world's oldest democracy not to have a more reasonable, in fact robust, relationship with the world's largest democracy' Drawing on further similarities between the two countries, Armitage said: 'It would be unreasonable for a multi-ethnic, multi-religious democratic federation like the US not to have a more robust relationship with a multi-ethnic, multi-religious democratic federation like India. We've got everything going for it.' The US deputy secretary said strengthening of relations between Washington and New Delhi was not aimed at countering either China or any other country. 'I think whenever you try to establish a relationship with a country which is based on a third country, then you are doomed to failure. It is not a sustainable relationship. It is not something you can build on.' The upswing in bilateral ties between India and the US was witnessed after the May 1998 nuclear tests. Initially, Washington condemned the Pokhran II tests and imposed sanctions on India. But in subsequent months, it started warming up to Delhi. The culmination of the new beginning in their ties was a visit by former President Bill Clinton to India early last year and the 'Vision Statement' the two sides came out with to mark the occasion. Vajpayee also paid a return visit to the US last year, but in the following months the Democrats were replaced by the Republicans. The two sides have continued with their high-level contacts, which included a visit by foreign and defence minister Jaswant Singh to Washington, followed by a visit by national security adviser Brajesh Mishra. There has been a number of high-level visits to India by US officials, including Armitage. The interaction between officials and senior leaders of the two countries notwithstanding, the true worth of the bilateral relations could not be realised due to the sanctions on India. US officials, who visited Delhi recently have indicated that the Bush administration is working closely with the Congress to get the sanctions lifted.