US Secretary of State Michael Pompeo to visit India from June 25-27

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In the first high-level visit from any country following the Lok Sabha polls, US Secretary of State Michael Pompeo will be in India from June 25-27 and hold talks with the leadership here to strengthen the strategic partnership. 

His visit comes ahead of a meeting between US President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in Osaka, Japan on June 28-29.

During his visit, Pompeo would hold talks with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and call upon other dignitaries, Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said at a media briefing.

He said Pompeo’s visit is an important opportunity for both sides to further strengthen the India-US strategic partnership and continue high-level engagement on matters of mutual interest, including bilateral, regional and global issues. 

Kumar said despite all the talk of trade issues, bilateral trade has grown to USD 150 billion. He cited developments such as the seven-fold increase in bilateral trade since 2001, India being granted a major defence partner status, and the US supporting India for a permanent seat in the Security Council, to assert that ties were on an upswing.

Pompeo yesterday spoke with Jaishankar on the telephone and underscored the Trump administration’s strong commitment to work closely with India to advance the bilateral strategic partnership. 

Apart from India, Pompeo will also travel to Sri Lanka, Japan and South Korea from June 24 to 30. His four-nation tour is aimed at deepening the US partnerships in the strategic Indo-Pacific region.