'Substantial progress in nuke deal talks'

India and the US reported "substantial progress" in official-level talks over the civil nuclear deal, and decided to refer the issue to respective governments for a "final review".

In a joint statement issued after four days of intense negotiations, the two sides said they look forward to the completion of the "remaining steps and to the conclusion of the historic initiative".

"The discussions were constructive and positive, and both Under Secretary (Nicholas) Burns and Foreign Secretary (Shivshanker) Menon are pleased with the substantial progress made on the outstanding issues in the 123 agreement," it said.

"We will now refer the issue to our governments for final review," it added.

Reporting by Sridhar Krishnaswami in Washington