New Delhi : The situation arising out of the Hamas-Israel conflict and ways to further deepen the India-US strategic partnership figured in talks between External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Friday morning. The Jaishankar-Blinken meeting took place ahead of the fifth edition of India-US '2+2' defence and foreign ministerial ministerial dialogue.
In a post on 'X', the external affairs minister described his talks with his US counterpart as "open and productive". "Pleased to meet with Secretary of State @SecBlinken this morning. An open and productive conversation on further developing our strategic partnership. Also spoke about West Asia, Indo-Pacific and other regional issues," he said.
In the last couple of weeks, the US Secretary of State has been engaged in hectic diplomacy on the Israel-Hamas war. Blinken and US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin are in Delhi for the fifth edition of the '2+2' foreign and defence ministerial dialogue which is aimed at taking forward India-US futuristic roadmap for deeper strategic cooperation.
The Indian delegation at the talks will be led by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Jaishankar. The defence ministry said a number of strategic, defence and technology issues are expected to be discussed at the '2+2' dialogue and the bilateral meeting between Singh and Austin.