France on Wednesday urged the Nuclear Suppliers Group to support India's membership at its upcoming meet in Seoul on Friday. France's Foreign Ministry said that India's entry into the international body will help support global efforts to combat proliferation, reported PTI. "In line with its active and long-standing support to India's entry to the NSG as a full-fledged member, France calls on its members, who are meeting on 23 June in Seoul, to take a positive decision," their statement said.

The reiteration of their support comes soon after Pakistan's Foreign Affairs Advisor, Sartaj Aziz, said their country has made "successful efforts against India’s membership to the Nuclear Suppliers Group". Chinese officials did a volte face and said they were open to discussing India's joining the body.

India and Pakistan have both applied for membership to the NSG, which currently has 48 countries that work together to monitor and control the export of materials or technology that can be used to create nuclear weapons. On June 13, Aziz had claimed that Islamabad’s credentials for membership to the group are stronger than India’s.

Earlier, Britain and Switzerland also expressed support for India's membership in the NSG.