US' Marco Rubio to visit India; focus on trade, defence & energy

Washington: India is looking to strengthen its ties with the US during the visit of US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who will undertake a four-day visit to India beginning May 23 to further cooperation in the fields of trade, defence and energy.

The Department of State announced that Rubio would visit Kolkata, Agra, Jaipur, and New Delhi.

“Secretary Rubio will travel to India from May 23-26, where he will visit Kolkata, Agra, Jaipur, and New Delhi,” State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott said.

The Secretary will discuss energy, security, trade, and defence cooperation during meetings with senior Indian officials, Pigott said.

Rubio will travel from Sweden to India, where he will attend the NATO Foreign Ministers meeting on May 22.

India is set to host a meeting of Quad foreign ministers next week that is expected to deliberate on pressing global challenges, including the fallout of the West Asia crisis.

The New Delhi meeting is planned for May 26, and it is scheduled to be attended by Rubio, Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong and Japanese Foreign Minister Motegi Toshimitsu, with Indian External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar presiding over it.