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New Delhi, October 25
US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson will meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday on his first official visit to South Asia, as the world’s two biggest democracies look to deepen economic and strategic ties amid China’s growing clout.
Tillerson landed in New Delhi on Tuesday night after a day-trip to India’s arch rival, Pakistan, which he called an important US ally in the restive region that includes war-torn Afghanistan.
The visit comes a week after Tillerson made a speech in Washington about the United States wanting to “dramatically deepen” cooperation with India, which it sees as a key partner in the face of what he considers to be negative Chinese influence in Asia.
“This visit could not come at a more promising time for the US-India partnership, as we celebrate the 70th anniversary of relations between our two countries and look forward to co-hosting the Global Entrepreneurship Summit in (the Indian city of) Hyderabad next month,” Alice G. Wells, a senior US state department official, wrote in a blogpost. Tillerson, who toured India on several occasions as an oil executive before joining President Donald Trump’s government this year, was meeting Modi’s powerful national security adviser, Ajit Doval, on Wednesday morning.
Earlier today, he met his Indian counterpart, Sushma Swaraj.
