Ahead of India visit, Mike Pompeo congratulates S Jaishankar on new position, reaffirms 'strong commitment' towards US-India partnership

New Delhi: US Secretary of State Michael Pompeo on Thursday spoke with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar to congratulate him on his appointment and reiterated Washington’s strong commitment towards advancing US-India strategic partnership. “Secretary Michael R Pompeo spoke today with Indian External Affairs Minister Dr Subrahmanyam Jaishankar to congratulate him on his appointment. Secretary Pompeo underscored the strong US commitment to working closely with the new Indian Government to advance our strategic partnership,” Spokesperson of the US State Department, Morgan Ortagus, said in a statement. [caption id=“attachment_3059804” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File image of S Jaishankar. PTI[/caption] “Secretary Pompeo and Minister Jaishankar also discussed shared US and Indian objectives in safeguarding a free and open Indo-Pacific, US-India security cooperation, and the US-India economic partnership,” the statement added. Pompeo will visit India from 25-27 June, the first high-level engagement between India and the United States after NDA’s return to power for a second term. “It will be the first high-level engagement with the United States after elections in India. During his visit, Pompeo will hold talks with the External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and will also call on other dignitaries in the Government of India,” External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said during a press briefing in Delhi on Thursday. Pompeo’s visit will provide “an important opportunity for both sides to explore further ways to strengthen India-US strategic partnership”, he said. Kumar noted that the two sides will hold high-level engagements on matters of mutual interest including bilateral, regional and global issues. In addition, Pompeo’s visit will further prepare grounds for a summit meeting between US president Donald Trump and Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Osaka, Japan, on the sidelines of the G20 meeting scheduled to be held later in June.