Home Minister P Chidambaram's [Images] proposed visit to the United States this weekend has most likely been deferred, sources informed on Thursday.

Sources suggested that the Ministry of External Affairs had expressed reservations over Chidambaram's visit. The MEA believed that President-elect Barack Obama [Images] and his team were presently pre-occupied with the crisis in West Asia. Apparently, Washington had communicated the same to New Delhi [Images].

Many eyebrows had been raised when Chidambaram announced his trip to the United States to hand over the dossier prepared by India, highlighting Pakistani involvement in the November 26 attacks on Mumbai. In political circles, the move was termed as premature and imprudent.