External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar met his US counterpart Marco Rubio in Mumbai on Tuesday to explore avenues to further bolster bilateral ties, stating that there is a list of points to be covered, including trade, energy, technology, defence and people-to-people ties.
Regional developments were also discussed at the meeting. The discussions were attended by Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri, US Ambassador to India Sergio Gor and others.
Following the meeting, Jaishankar expressed some thoughts on deepening bilateral engagement on X, noting the discussions with his counterpart in several important areas. Energy security and defence cooperation were also discussed, Rubio added, indicating that there is a need to deepen the strategic partnership between the US and India.
The senior officials of the UAE, India and Japan discussed further cooperation over land matters and other bilateral issues during a trilateral meeting held earlier in Mumbai, during which Mr. Rubio and Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the UAE FM, discussed the situation in Afghanistan as well. They talked about regional energy security and underwent a common agenda on economy issues.
Rubio said the meeting was intended to talk about energy security and boost shared economic interests. The Ambassador also mentioned some possible fields of cooperation between the three countries, such as cooperation in areas of energy, trade, technology, connectivity in the region, etc. They were interested in finding ways to put good relationships into action,” he said.
Rubio came here to Mumbai earlier this day on an official visit to India. He was accompanied by the Ambassador Gor and his wife, Jeanette Rubio.
The ministry of external affairs hailed the U.S. secretary of state’s second visit to India as one that will help strengthen cooperation on the various facets of the India-U.S. Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership.
Ashish Shelar, the minister for culture, electronics, information technology and artificial intelligence of Maharashtra who was met at the airport by the minister.
The meetings coincide with India, the United States and the UAE pushing for greater enlargement in the energy and technology sectors among other strategic areas, as well as discussions on developments in the region and on economic priorities.