US Ambassador to India Sergio Gor on Tuesday said the US-India trade agreement is in its ‘final steps’ and that just 1 per cent of negotiations remains to be completed, expressing optimism that the pact would soon be finalised.Speaking at the US-India Strategic Partnership Forum Leadership Summit, Gor emphasized his determination to reach a consensus, as it would benefit both countries and be finalised after almost 18 months of negotiations.“We are in the final steps on this deal. Most of this deal is complete. There are a few items that remain on both sides. It’s in the last 1 per cent of that deal,” he said.The US envoy to India expressed optimism about the two countries’ relationship, citing the close bond between US President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.“People ask, Why is this taking so long? We have been at this for a year and a half. To put it into perspective, the European trade deal took 20 years. So no matter what, as long as we beat the European deal, I think we’re in good shape. But I’m determined to bring this to a close,” he said.President Trump still talks about his trip to India and has extremely positive memories of it, he stated.“His (Trump’s) visit last time was one of the most remarkable visits that he continues to talk about. He holds it in a very fond place. It’s an incredible thing. So, I look forward to having the President visit us back in India,” Gor said.He further stated that businesses involved in bilateral trade would benefit from increased certainty as a result of the deal. Citing several high-level discussions between trade officials, the envoy claimed that both governments had maintained a fast pace of negotiations in recent weeks.“Over the past two decades, our bilateral trade has increased from $20 billion to $220 billion. That’s an incredible job, and it’s also something that we are going to take to a much higher level,” he said.He cited PM Modi and President Trump’s ambitious goal of raising bilateral trade to $500 billion.