NEW DELHI: Outgoing U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan will visit India on January 5 and 6 for a final round of talks with his counterpart, Ajit K. Doval, and other senior officials as the two countries look to burnish their ties that enjoy a groundswell of bipartisan support.
The discussions will cover a wide range of bilateral, regional and global issues, along with finalising ongoing initiatives as the Joe Biden administration concludes its tenure. Congressman Michael Waltz will succeed Sullivan on January 20, when Donald Trump is inaugurated as the 47th President of the United States.
“National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan will travel to New Delhi, India on January 5-6 for a capstone meeting with Indian National Security Advisor Ajit Doval that will span a range of issues across the breadth of the U.S.-India partnership – from space, defense, and strategic technology cooperation to shared security priorities in the Indo-Pacific and beyond,” said a White House statement.
During his visit, Sullivan will meet with External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and is expected to call on Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Sullivan will visit the Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, where he will meet with young Indian entrepreneurs. The high-ranking US official will deliver a speech at the institute, highlighting the key steps taken by the United States and India to strengthen their innovation alliance through the U.S.-India initiative on Critical and Emerging Technology (iCET), a highpoint of India-US ties under the Biden administration.
“This will be Sullivan’s final trip to the Indo-Pacific region as National Security Advisor. "He’s very excited and looking forward to these conversations at this critical time,” US National Security Communications Advisor John Kirby said.
“The two national security advisors will take stock of the progress that the two countries have made over the last four years, which has been a historic and transformative period in the bilateral relationship," the official said.
They will also "continue to finalise some ongoing initiatives that were important priorities for us to wrap up to continue our technology cooperation through the end of the administration and to identify new opportunities that we hope with an upcoming team, will continue to take forward,” added the official.