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Key Indo-US talks to be held on September 6

The fresh schedule was decided after the talks scheduled earlier to be held this month in the US on July 6 were postponed at the US request.

New Delhi: The government on Friday officially announced that the inaugural “2+2 dialogue” with the United States at the foreign and defence ministerial level would be held in New Delhi on September 6. The fresh schedule was decided after the talks —scheduled earlier to be held this month in the US on July 6 — were postponed at the US request.

In a statement, the MEA said, “minister of external affairs Sushma Swaraj and defence minister Nirmala Sitharaman will host the US secretary of state Michael Pompeo and US secretary of defence James Mattis, in New Delhi on September 6 for the inaugural 2+2 dialogue. This new dialogue format is in pursuit of agreement reached between India and the US during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Washington on last year. The 2+2 meeting will cover a broad range of bilateral, regional and global issues of shared interest, with a view to strengthening strategic and security ties between the two countries.”

In a statement, the MEA said: “Minister of external affairs Sushma Swaraj and defence minister Nirmala Sitharaman will host the U.S. Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo and U.S. Secretary of Defence James Mattis, in New Delhi on 6 September 2018 for the inaugural 2+2 dialogue.

“This new dialogue format is in pursuit of agreement reached between India and the U.S. during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Washington D.C. on 25-26 June 2017. The 2+2 meeting will cover a broad range of bilateral, regional and global issues of shared interest, with a view to strengthening strategic and security ties between the two countries.”

It may be recalled that a few weeks ago, U.S. secretary of state Michael R. Pompeo had told Ms Sushma Swaraj that the U.S. had decided to postpone the 2+2 dialogue with India since he had to travel to the North Korean Capital Pyongyang from July 5 to 7. Meanwhile, U.S. State Department said secretary of state Michael R. Pompeo and defence secretary James Mattis would travel to India for the dialogue. “The United States is pleased to announce that the inaugural US-India '2+2 dialogue' will be held in New Delhi, India, on September 6,” State Department said.

( Source : Deccan Chronicle. )
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