US: Ties With India Are Of ‘Critical Importance’

New Delhi:After the meeting between external affairs minister S. Jaishankar and American secretary of state Marco Rubio in New York late on Monday evening (IST), the United States on Tuesday said that “India is a relationship of critical importance” and both sides will continue cooperation, including within the four-nation Quad. The US assertion comes despite the lack of clarity regarding whether India will host the Quad summit this year or if President Donald Trump has any plans to visit India.

In a statement on the meeting on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly high-level week, the US said, "Mr Rubio, reiterating that India is a relationship of critical importance to the United States, expressed his appreciation for the Indian government’s continued engagement on a number of issues, including trade, defence, energy, pharmaceuticals, critical minerals and other items related to the bilateral relationship. Mr Rubio and Mr Jaishankar agreed the United States and India will continue working together to promote a free and open Indo-Pacific region, including through the Quad.”

After a series of decisions of the Trump adminstration that have severely hit India's interests, the meeting had taken place in which both foreign ministers “agreed on the importance of sustained engagement to progress on priority areas”.

After the meeting, the foreign minister had posted late on Monday evening, “Good to meet @SecRubio this morning in New York (late evening IST). Our conversation covered a range of bilateral and international issues of current concern… We will remain in touch.”

Commerce minister Piyush Goyal is also in the US and leading the Indian side for trade talks with the US to negotiate a bilateral trade pact.

The first setback came last month when the US President imposed a 50 per cent tariff on Indian exports to the US, half of which are sanctions or a penalty for the import of Russian oil by India. The second setback came last week when the US withdrew exemptions on sanctions that were granted in 2018 on the Iranian port of Chabahar, which India has a major role in developing, as it gives sea-land connectivity for India via Iran to Afghanistan and Central Asia, bypassing the blocked land route via Pakistan. The third setback came soon after when the Trump administration drastically raised the fee for H-1B visas to a staggering $100,000.

Breaking the ice after the strain in ties, the US President had called up PM Narendra Modi last week. Following which both leaders praised each other.

India had, just last week, said that trade talks in New Delhi with the US were "positive and forward-looking", and both sides have decided to intensify efforts to conclude a trade pact at the earliest. New Delhi had also said it remains committed to taking this special partnership with the US to "new heights".