NEW DELHI: India and the United States held the inaugural edition of the twice-deferred 2+2 dialogue on Thursday, with External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman meeting their US counterparts Michael R Pompeo and James Mattis.
The talks were scheduled to last just a few hours and focus on strategic and security topics. They came amid a series of divisive issues, including Washington’s demands that India stop buying Iranian oil and a Russian air-defense system.
Iran is India’s third-largest oil supplier after Iraq and Saudi Arabia.The US’ sanctions on the import of Iranian petroleum products will be effective from November 4.
Last night, while EAM Sushma Swaraj received the US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo at the airport on his first visit to India, Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman went to receive her American counterpart James Mattis.
Pompeo and Indian External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj met separately Thursday before joining top defense officials for talks.
“India attaches the highest priority to its strategic partnership with the United States. We see that the United States is our partner of choice,” Swaraj said in her opening remarks.Pompeo said the U.S. values its relationship with India, and noted “we fully support India’s rise.”
Indian Defense Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in her opening remarks said that defense cooperation has become one of the most significant dimensions of the countries’ relationship.
In a tweet, External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said the dialogue was a reflection of the shared commitment of the two countries to provide a positive, forward-looking vision to their strategic partnership and rowing convergence on important issues.
