Blinken arrives in Delhi for 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue says State Department
Anjali Sharma
GG News Bureau
WASHINGTON DC, 10th Nov. According to US State Department on Thursday the US Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in New Delhi to participate in the 5th India-US 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue.
US State Department Principal Deputy Spokesperson Vedant Patel was speaking on Blinken’s visit to India, said: “India is a country that we have a deep partnership with. He (Blinken) will be going for the 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue along with Secretary of Defence Lloyd J. Austin. So I expect, of course, that deepening this security cooperation in partnership, will be, one of the many topics that are discussed.”
“It was something that was obviously raised during Prime Minister Modi’s state visit earlier this year. And I know the secretary looks forward to being there and in engaging directly, with his counterparts on this. But I will let the trip take place before we talk more about it,” he added.
The high-profile US delegation led by Secretary of State Blinken with Secretary of Defense Lloyd J Austin III, visiting New Delhi for the 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue.
State Department said that the dialogue will provide a forum for top-level discussions between the US and India, addressing vital bilateral and global matters, with special emphasis on developments unfolding in the Indo-Pacific region.
Blinken and Defence Secretary Austin will meet with their Indian counterparts, Minister for External Affairs S Jaishankar and Minister of Defense Rajnath Singh, as well as other senior officials.
The discussions are expected to encompass a wide spectrum of issues, including strengthening bilateral relations, addressing global concerns, and promoting cooperation in the Indo-Pacific.
“The Secretary will then travel to New Delhi to participate in the 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue, joined by Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III. The delegation will meet with Minister for External Affairs Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, Minister of Defense Rajnath Singh, and other senior Indian officials to discuss both bilateral and global concerns and developments in the Indo-Pacific,” read an official statement by the US State Department.
Spokesperson Matthew Miller said, “Secretary of State Antony J Blinken will travel to Tel Aviv, Israel; Amman, Jordan; Ankara, Turkiye; Tokyo, Japan; Seoul, the Republic of Korea (ROK); and New Delhi, India November 2-10, 2023.”
The 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue is a diplomatic summit held every year since 2018, with the Minister of External Affairs and the Defence Minister representing India and the Secretary of State and the Secretary of Defence representing the United States.
According to the sources, the US side is also expected to push for military hardware cooperation while India is likely to ask for the sharing of high-end technology for developing indigenous weapon systems during the ministerial.
India and the US agreed to a USD 3 billion deal for supplying 31 MQ-9B Predator drones to Indian defence forces.
US is also pushing for the sale of six additional P-8I surveillance planes to India.
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