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Terming it "quite extraordinary," Congress MP Jairam Ramesh on Thursday launched a sharp attack on the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) after the US Ambassador to India disclosed that External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar is expected to meet US Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Mumbai, questioning whether the announcement of India's diplomatic engagements on home soil has been "outsourced."
Ramesh questioned why the announcement of the External Affairs Minister's official engagements on domestic soil was being "outsourced" to a foreign envoy instead of being officially communicated by the MEA. In a post on X, the Congress General Secretary in-charge of Communications said, "It is not surprising that the US Ambassador to India has just given more details on US Secretary of State Marco Rubios forthcoming visit to Mumbai. It is also not wholly surprising to hear him say that Mr. Rubio will be meeting Govt of India officials in Mumbai. But what is quite extraordinary is his statement that 'we expect the Minister Dr. Jaishankar to be joining us there along with other individuals'." https://x.com/Jairam_Ramesh/status/2110681913279361531 Targeting the MEA over protocol, Ramesh asked: "Since when has the announcement of Indias Minister of External Affairs meetings within India been outsourced to somebody other than the official spokesperson of the MEA?" The senior Congress leader further alleged a pattern of information reaching the Indian public through US officials first. "India gets to know from the US Ambassador just as it first got to know from Mr. Rubio himself on the evening of May 10, 2025 that Operation Sindoor had been halted. Why is the MEA silent on the External Affairs Ministers tryst with Mr. Rubio in Mumbai?" Ramesh added. Earlier in the day, US Ambassador to India Sergio Gor described US Secretary of State Marco Rubio's upcoming visit to India as "more business-focused", highlighting growing bilateral trade, energy cooperation, technology partnerships and investment opportunities, while confirming that External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar is expected to meet the US Secretary in Mumbai. Speaking at the Bloomberg New Economy 2026 programme, Gor said the visit would focus on advancing commercial ties between the two countries, with Rubio scheduled to travel to Mumbai and Jamnagar during his India. "This is Secretary's second official visit to India," Gor said. "This trip is a little more business-focused, and so once again, if you look at our bilateral trade between the United States and India, it's been an incredible upswing," he added. According to a media note issued by the US Department of State, Rubio will visit Uzbekistan and India between October 17 and 22. Following engagements in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, the US Secretary of State will travel to Mumbai and Jamnagar, where he is scheduled to meet senior Indian government officials and business leaders. The State Department said the visit would aim to "strengthen the US-India strategic partnership, exchange views on regional and global dynamics, and discuss prospects for enhanced energy cooperation". His remarks placed defence cooperation alongside investment and technology as key elements of the broader relationship, highlighting the range of sectors in which India and the United States are working together. Rubio's planned visit to Jamnagar and Mumbai is expected to provide an opportunity for discussions on energy cooperation, commercial investment and the wider strategic partnership. The visit follows Rubio's planned engagements in Uzbekistan, where he will participate in the C5+1 Ministerial and hold bilateral meetings with senior officials from Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and the Kyrgyz Republic. (ANI)
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