India, US hold foreign office consultations, reaffirm commitment towards 'peaceful and prosperous' Indo-Pacific

New Delhi: India and the US have reaffirmed their commitment to work towards ensuring a free, open, inclusive, peaceful and prosperous Indo-Pacific. They also agreed on the need to deepen cooperation in the United Nations, especially during India’s membership of the United Nations Security Council. Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla and the US Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs David Hale on Tuesday exchanged views on a number of regional and global issues of shared interests on Tuesday during the virtual foreign office consultations between the two countries. “They reaffirmed their commitment to work towards ensuring a free, open, inclusive, peaceful and prosperous Indo-Pacific. They agreed on the need to deepen cooperation in the United Nations, especially during India’s membership of the United Nations Security Council for the period 2021-2022,” an External Affairs Ministry release said. The two senior officials reviewed the entire gamut of engagements under the India-US Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership, including political, economic, commercial, regional and international cooperation. In the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic, they agreed to further strengthen the bilateral health partnership, including on pharmaceuticals and vaccine development. They agreed to remain in touch and move forward on the bilateral agenda through a range of mechanisms like the 2+2 ministerial that India will host later this year. Shringla and Hale discussed ways to further enhance mutually beneficial trade and people-to-people ties, including through visa facilitation for students and professionals.