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Jaishankar will discuss bilateral, regional and global issues with his counterparts during his visit, which is his second US trip in the third Modi government.
This is Jaishankar’s second US visit since the third Modi government took office this year. (S Jaishankar/X)
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will embark on a six-day trip to the United States from Tuesday (December 24). He will discuss key bilateral, regional and global issues with his counterparts and also chair a conference of the Consul Generals of India in the US, according to the Ministry of External Affairs.
Notably, Jaishankar’s crucial visit comes weeks ahead of US President-elect Donald Trump’s presidency. This is also his second visit to the United States since the third Modi government took office in June this year.
Jaishankar last visited the US when Prime Minister Narendra Modi embarked on a trip to attend the Quad Leaders’ Summit alongside President Joe Biden, Australian PM Anthony Albanese and former Japanese counterpart Fumio Kishida. PM Modi was warmly received by Biden at his personal residence in Wilmington, Delaware.
Jaishankar met his US counterpart Antony Blinken and discussed the India-US commitment to deepening bilateral ties, coordinating closely on regional and global challenges, and advancing cooperation on critical and emerging technologies, according to a US State Department readout.
Earlier, US envoy to India Eric Garcetti called for lower tariffs between the two countries to boost trade and ensure a more balanced partnership. “We need, together, to lower tariffs, not to see them go up. We need, together, to increase trade and to make it more fair and equal,” Garcetti said at an event on December 19.
Donald Trump last week hinted towards a more stringent trade stance towards India, stating that his upcoming administration to resort to tit-for-tat approach. “If they tax us, we tax them the same amount,” he said.
“The word reciprocal is important because if somebody charges us – India, we don’t have to talk about our own – if India charges us 100 per cent, do we charge them nothing for the same? You know, they send in a bicycle, and we send them a bicycle. They charge us 100 and 200. India charges a lot. Brazil charges a lot. If they want to charge us, that’s fine, but we’re going to charge them the same thing,” Trump added.