India, US Two Plus Two meeting: Agreement for military purchase

US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo met with External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in a two-plus-two meeting.

"This meet was a focus on regional stability in South Asia, South-East Asia and Indo-Pacific... India being a part of groups like the ASEAN also help greatly in this endeavour," Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj said.

"In today's meet we have agreed to speed up the process of India's entry into the NSG (Nuclear Suppliers Group),"  Swaraj said.

"It reflects our leaders’ desire to further elevate our bilateral strategic communication on cross-cutting defence and security issues," she said in a statement.

This new dialogue format was decided by Prime Minister Modi and President Trump in their first meeting in Washington DC in June 2017.

"Overall, I am highly satisfied with our conversation today. The 2+2 meeting has helped shared efforts of both sides to promote a whole-of-government approach for our strategic priorities. India and the United States, as the largest and the oldest democracies, each pursuing its independent foreign policy, have many shared global objectives. As equal partners in cooperation, our two countries can benefit not only our two peoples but also become a factor for peace and stability in the wider world," Swaraj  said.

"We have agreed to closely monitor the implementation of the decisions taken today. Secretary Pompeo and I decided to remain in touch regularly through the new hotline between the Foreign Ministers that we will establish."

The External Affairs Minister said India welcomed the recent designations of Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorists by the United States. "They underscore the international community’s scrutiny over the threat of terrorism emanating from Pakistan, which has affected India and the United States alike. In the 10th anniversary of the 26/11 attacks, we recognized the importance of justice and retribution for the masterminds behind this terrorist attack."

"We also discussed the situation in South Asia in some detail. India supports President Trump’s South Asia Policy. His call for Pakistan to stop its policy of supporting cross-border terrorism finds resonance with us. We discussed the ongoing efforts by India and the United States in promoting an Afghan-led, Afghan-owned and Afghan government-controlled reconciliation process, that brings together all ethnic groups and political formation in the country," she said in the statement.

"Rapidly growing economies is giving rise to new opportunities and a basis for more intense economic engagement which supports development of manufacturing, promotes knowledge and innovation, creates jobs and provides critical resources for growth. The United States is emerging as a supplier of energy to India. We recognized and supported efforts made by the two sides to address trade-related issues on both sides and to make trade balanced and mutually beneficial."

"I sought Secretary Pompeo’s support to nurture our people-to-people links. Specifically, I conveyed our expectation for a non-discriminatory and predictable approach to the H1B visa regime, given its high impact on innovation, competitiveness and people-to-people partnership, all of which are a vital source of strength for our relationship,"Swaraj said.

"In the discussion of the four Ministers at the 2+2 dialogue, we noticed a growing convergence of views between our countries, among others on the Indo-Pacific. Our respective approaches towards this concept have been outlined by our leaders --- by President Trump at the APEC meeting last year and by Prime Minister Modi at the Shangri-La Dialogue this summer. We see the Indo-Pacific as a free, open and inclusive concept, with ASEAN centrality at the core and defined by a common rules-based order that both our countries are pursuing. "

"We welcomed the United States’ interest in expanding its economic footprint in the region as they complement our own efforts. We agreed to strengthen our bilateral cooperation as well as cooperation with other partners in the region to achieve common goals in connectivity and infrastructure."

"Our counter-terrorism cooperation has acquired a new qualitative edge and purpose. We recognized the value of the Terrorists Designations Dialogue established last year as well as other mechanisms to promote cooperation in counter-terrorism and homeland security. We have agreed to deepen our cooperation in international forums like the United Nations and the Financial Action Task Force," Swaraj said.

Image: twitter.com/USAmbIndia