Washington ready to elevate relationship with India even further: US Ambassador 

New Delhi, Feb 5 (IANS) US Ambassador to India, Sergio Gor on Thursday welcomed recent engagement between the leadership of two nations and expressed Washington's readiness to further elevate ties with New Delhi. 

Gor shared pictures of External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar's interactions in Washington with the US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and US Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent.

"Engagement at the highest levels is currently happening. The United States is ready to elevate this relationship even further. Limitless Potential!", he stated.

EAM Jaishankar, currently on a visit to the US, attended the Critical Minerals Ministerial convened by Marco Rubio on Wednesday and expressed India's support for structured international cooperation to reduce risks in critical mineral supply chains.

During his visit, EAM Jaishankar held separate meetings with Marco Rubio and Scott Bessent, holding wide-ranging discussions on the India-US strategic and economic partnership.

“Delighted to meet US Secretary Macro Rubio this afternoon,” EAM Jaishankar said in a post on X after the meeting. “A wide-ranging conversation that covered our bilateral cooperation agenda, regional and global issues.”

He said the discussions with Rubio covered multiple pillars of the India-US relationship. “Facets of India - US Strategic Partnership discussed included trade, energy, nuclear, defence, critical minerals and technology,” EAM Jaishankar said.

The External Affairs Minister said both sides agreed to move quickly on follow-up engagements. “Agreed on the early meetings of various mechanisms to advance our shared interests,” he added.

According to a State Department readout, the two leaders discussed formalising bilateral cooperation on critical minerals exploration, mining, and processing — an area that has emerged as a central pillar of the India–US economic and strategic relationship.

The meeting came at a time when two nations announced a trade deal aimed at lowering barriers and expanding market access between the world’s two largest democracies.

Secretary Rubio and EAM Jaishankar welcomed the agreement, underscoring the importance of the two democracies working together to unlock new economic opportunities and advance shared energy security goals, the readout said.

The discussions also focused on the regional and multilateral dimensions of the partnership. Rubio and EAM Jaishankar concluded their meeting by reaffirming their commitment to expanding bilateral and multilateral cooperation through the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue. They acknowledged that a prosperous Indo-Pacific region remains vital to advancing shared interests.

EAM Jaishankar also met US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent in Washington. “Pleased to meet US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent in Washington DC today,” he said in a separate post.

EAM Jaishankar described the talks as productive. “Had a useful discussion on advancement of India-US economic partnership and strategic cooperation,” he said.

--IANS

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