Jaishankar, Rubio Hold Phone Talks on Trade and Defence Cooperation

In a statement, the President’s Secretariat said that the President of India accepted credentials from the envoys of Trinidad and Tobago, Austria and the USA. Austrian Ambassador Robert Zischg and Trinidad and Tobago High Commissioner Chandradath Singh were among those who presented their credentials.

Gor, who assumed office earlier this week as Ambassador-designate, said it was an honour to present his credentials to President Murmu and to serve in India at a time of promise and opportunity in the India-US relationship. He said he looked forward to working closely with the Government of India and the Indian people to advance shared priorities in defence, trade, technology and critical minerals, and to further strengthen ties between the two democracies. A confidant of US President Donald Trump, Gor had earlier said that while trade remained important, cooperation would continue across areas such as security, counterterrorism, energy, education and health.

Meanwhile, the United States said on Wednesday that Secretary of State Marco Rubio had spoken with external affairs minister S. Jaishankar late on Tuesday. According to the US readout, the two leaders discussed the proposed bilateral trade agreement and civil nuclear energy cooperation.

Secretary Rubio congratulated India on enacting the Sustainable Harnessing and Advancement of Nuclear Energy for Transforming India Bill and expressed interest in leveraging the development to enhance civil nuclear cooperation, expand opportunities for American companies, advance shared energy security goals and secure critical mineral supply chains. The two sides also discussed ongoing trade negotiations and exchanged views on regional developments, reaffirming their commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific.

Jaishankar later said in a post on X that he had a good conversation with Secretary Rubio, during which they discussed trade, critical minerals, nuclear cooperation, defence and energy, and agreed to remain in touch on these and other issues.

India and the US are currently engaged in talks for a bilateral trade pact, though ties have faced strain following steep American tariffs imposed on Indian goods last year.