NEW DELHI: US Defence Secretary Lloyd J Austin on Friday commended India’s leadership role in the Indo-Pacific and growing engagement with like-minded partners across the strategically important region to promote shared goals.
As part of his larger Indo-Pacific visits, Austin reached India on Friday, with plans of meeting the senior decision makers of the country, aiming to further strengthen ties between the two countries. Austin also met Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
“During the meeting, Modi outlined his vision for the strategic partnership between the two countries and emphasised the important role of bilateral defence cooperation in Indo-US ties,” a PMO statement said.
Austin’s two-day visit ends on Saturday. Apart from Indo-Pacific and other security challenges, talks are also said to cover Indo-US defence co-operation and upcoming defence deals between the two.
Austin also met National Security Advisor Ajit Doval to discuss security challenges in the region, including Afghanistan and Indo-Pacific.
In a series of meetings, Austin will be calling on Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, with an aim to discuss ways to further enhance bilateral ties, including defence between the US and India.
It’s the first high-level visit after President Joe Biden won the elections and formed the government in US.
“Secretary Austin reiterated the US government’s continued commitment towards strengthening the bilateral defence relations between the two countries. He expressed US’ strong desire to further enhance the strategic partnership for peace, stability and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific region and beyond,” said the PMO statement.
Austin embarked on his Indo-Pacific visits on March 13.