New Delhi: US Defence Secretary Lloyd J Austin III is scheduled to arrive in New Delhi on Friday (19 March) on a three-day visit to India. The US Defence rep will meet Defence Minister Rajnath Singh. Following which he will begin his official meets, starting with India’s National Security Advisor Ajit Doval to discuss China and important regional security issues including Afghanistan.
Later, he is expected to call on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and also External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar. An official meeting with the External Minister of the Nation is scheduled for Saturday.
Mr Austin is in India from March 19 to 21 and is scheduled to meet the top political and military leadership of the country. India and the US are sharing the window of opinions towards Chinese attempts to change the status quo in the eastern Ladakh area in April May time frame last year. It helped the country aiding defence hardware supplies during the conflict apart from important satellite data.
Indo-Pacific region is largely viewed as an area comprising the Indian Ocean and the western and central Pacific Ocean, including the South China Sea. China’s territorial claims in the South China Sea and its efforts to advance into the Indian Ocean have challenged several continents to raise a concern.