Washington DC, Feb. 4 -- The Director of the Centre for New American Security (CNAS), Lisa Curtis, on Tuesday (local time) described the recently announced India-US trade deal, in which Washington reduced the tariff on Indian goods to 18 per cent, as a "major step forward" for bilateral ties, while also cautioning that the relationship will take time to fully recover after months of diplomatic strain.

Speaking to ANI about the agreement announced on Monday, Curtis said the deal would provide a significant boost to US-India relations but noted that trust between the two countries had been strained over the past 10 months due to trade disputes and differences over regional security issues.

"The announcement of the conclusion of the trade ...