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Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri has engaged in a series of high-level meetings with senior United States officials during a three-day visit to Washington, focusing on the volatile situations in West Asia and the Indo-Pacific while reviewing strategic defence and trade relations.
The Foreign Secretary's itinerary included significant talks at the Pentagon with Under Secretary of War for Policy Elbridge Colby. This encounter followed their recent dialogue in New Delhi during the India-US Defence Policy Group meeting, after Colby's visit to India last month to push forward the bilateral defence partnership. Commenting on the meeting, the Indian Embassy in the US noted on X that the discussion aimed at "sustaining the momentum of India-US defence exchanges." The embassy further detailed that Foreign Secretary Shri Vikram Misri had "another wide-ranging conversation with Under Secretary of War for Policy Elbridge Colby @USWPColby at the Pentagon, covering the ongoing developments in the Indo-Pacific region and West Asia." Continuing the focus on security cooperation, Misri met with the Under Secretary of War for Acquisition and Sustainment, Mike Duffey. These discussions were aimed at bolstering defence industrial ties, technology sharing, and supply chain integration, adhering to the framework of the Major Defence Partnership established last year. The embassy described this engagement as a "fruitful interaction with the Under Secretary of War for Acquisition and Sustainment Mike Duffey @USDASDuffey at the Pentagon." Beyond the Pentagon, the Foreign Secretary moved to the Department of Commerce for meetings with Under Secretaries Jeffrey Kessler and William Kimmitt. The talks were geared towards widening the scope of cooperation in commercial sectors and critical technologies, alongside the development of secure supply chains. "Foreign Secretary Shri Vikram Misri met Under Secretaries Jeffrey Kessler @BISgov and William Kimmitt @TradeGov to expand cooperation in commercial and critical technologies - key to transforming the India-US partnership for the 21st century. They also discussed building resilient and trusted supply chains," the embassy stated. In a parallel high-level military engagement, Air Chief Marshal AP Singh, currently on an official tour of the United States, visited the Peterson Space Force Base. During the visit, he held discussions with General Gregory M Guillot, the Commander of US NORTHCOM. According to the Indian Air Force, the interaction allowed the two sides to exchange views on "operational issues and the growing partnership," further underscoring the deepening strategic alignment between New Delhi and Washington. (ANI)
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