US Secretary of State Marco Rubio will visit India from May 23-26 to enhance cooperation in trade, defence, and energy, attending meetings with senior Indian officials and participating in a Quad group meeting in New Delhi.
Ambassadors of the Quad nations, consisting of the United States, India, Australia and Japan, held a rare publicised meeting in Beijing.
Saturday's Quad meeting in Delaware is taking place against the backdrop of China's assertive behaviour in the South China Sea, its sabre-rattling in the Taiwan Strait and increasing footprints in the Pacific and Indian Ocean, asserts Rup Narayan Das.
US President Donald Trump's call to Prime Minister Narendra Modi signals a concerted effort to reset strained Washington-New Delhi ties, with a focus on 'big-ticket' energy and trade deals, including increased Indian imports of US LNG and LPG, and potential cooperation on small modular reactors.
Delhi must now purge the delusional hopes of being a 'counterweight' to China in the US calculus, argues Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Frankly, was it really necessary in the middle of a fratricidal war for External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar to travel to Abu Dhabi for a one-on-one with the sheikh on April 12?Or, for National Security Advisor Ajit Doval to follow up on April 26? Or, for PM Narendra Modi to follow through today? There are no easy answers, notes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Soon after he was sworn in by Vice President J D Vance, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio hosted External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, Penny Wong from Australia and Japan's Iwaya Takeshi for his first multilateral meeting as the top American diplomat.
David Perdue said in a post on X that the US-India relationship delivers real results through close cooperation in diverse areas, including defence, energy and through Quad engagement.
India and the US have entered a new phase in their relationship, marked by greater parity, point out Harsh V Pant and Vivek Mishra.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar discussed the West Asia conflict's impact on the global economy, particularly energy security, with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio. He also engaged with GCC ambassadors and his Sri Lankan and German counterparts on the same issue.
'Trump's aggressive stance towards China and preference for military posturing could shift the Quad's balance towards overt militarisation.'
Modi emphasised the need to return to a path of dialogue and diplomacy in dealing with the Ukraine crisis.
The Quad grouping has called for bringing the perpetrators, organisers and financiers of the Pahalgam terror attack to justice without any delay and urged UN member nations to extend cooperation for it.
MEA Spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said the forthcoming Quad summit will provide an opportunity for the Quad leaders to exchange views about developments in the Indo-Pacific and contemporary global issues of mutual interest.
Dr Jaishankar is expected to discuss the dates for the fifth Quad leaders' summit in India later this year.
Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said China believes that state-to-state interactions should be in line with the trend of the time which is peace and development rather than exclusivity.
Increasing cooperation in critical minerals will top Prime Minister Modi's agenda during his discussions with leaders of Ghana, Argentinia, Brazil and Namibia.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Wednesday said that his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi would still travel next week to Australia despite the cancellation of the Quad leaders' meeting in Sydney and he is looking forward to welcoming him.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, US President Joe Biden, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Japanese PM Yoshihide Suga are expected to deliberate extensively to give a new momentum to the functioning of the Quad at the summit, diplomatic sources said.
If Lockheed Martin gets the opportunity, then it will set up a mega hub in India to produce the "iconic" aircraft and it will be the first such global facility outside of the US, top officials of the company told PTI.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio discussed cooperation in trade, critical minerals, nuclear energy, and defence, reaffirming commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific.
This will be the first face-to-face meeting between Rubio and Jaishankar following President Donald Trump's imposition of an additional 25 per cent tariff on India for Delhi's purchases of Russian oil, taking the total levies imposed on India by the Trump White House to 50 per cent.
'Trump is not shy when he is frustrated with countries'
In a move sending a strong signal to China, foreign ministers from Quad countries -- India, Australia, Japan and the United States -- in a joint statement on Tuesday strongly opposed any unilateral actions that seek to change the status quo by force or coercion.
China criticised the forthcoming meeting of the Foreign Ministers of India, Australia, Japan and the United States in Tokyo, saying it is opposed to the formation of "exclusive clique" harming third party's interests.
Rubio voiced "appreciation" for New Delhi's continued engagement on bilateral issues, including trade, defence and energy.
The Congress MP said he had been "troubled" by the US tariff regime from the very beginning, adding that India was already at a disadvantage compared to its regional competitors.
The Quad also vowed to work towards a free, open and prosperous Indo-Pacific, a region that has seen increasing Chinese military muscle-flexing in the last few years.
The annual Quad summit at President Joe Biden's hometown Wilmington is expected to roll out a series of new initiatives to boost cooperation in the Indo-Pacific and explore ways to find peaceful solutions to the conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza.
New Delhi, while opting not to retaliate yet to the American tariffs, has in recent weeks sought to reinforce its friendship with Moscow, and recalibrate its ties with Beijing rather than surrender to Washington's diktats.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Monday met United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio for bilateral discussions, as the high-level 80th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) kicks in.
The announcement for the QUAD Caucus came from Congressman Ami Bera, Ranking Member of the House Foreign Affairs Indo-Pacific Subcommittee, Congressman Rob Wittman, and Senators Tammy Duckworth and Pete Ricketts, both members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
After the war erupted between Russia and Ukraine, the US and Western nations imposed sanctions on Moscow. However, India has continued to purchase Russian oil.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will pay a three-day visit to the United States beginning September 21 to attend the annual Quad Summit and address the 'Summit of the Future' at the United Nations General Assembly.
After the 1962 War with China, there was a demand to forge greater defence cooperation between India and the West. One such voice was that of Sudhir Ghosh, a distinguished MP, to tie up strategic cooperation with the USA immediately after the Chinese attack on India, recalls Rup Narayan Das.
'We condemn recent illicit missile launches in the region that violate UN Security Council resolutions. We express serious concern over recent dangerous and aggressive actions in the maritime domain. We seek a region where no country dominates and no country is dominated one where all countries are free from coercion, and can exercise their agency to determine their futures,' the declaration said.
US President Joe Biden on Saturday rolled out the red carpet to welcome leaders of Quad countries, Prime Ministers Narendra Modi of India, Anthony Albanese from Australia and Fumio Kishida of Japan.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said that the Quad is not against anyone, but for a rules-based international order and respect for sovereignty, in a veiled reference to China.
The Quad Leaders' Summit this year was earlier supposed to be held in India, but US President Joe Biden was keen to hold the event in his hometown.
The war and Modi's recent visit to Ukraine is expected to figure prominently in the bilateral meeting, according to US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances