New Delhi : India-USA 2+2 Inter-sessional meeting was held on 07 September 2022 in New Delhi to follow-up on the India-U.S. 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue in April 2022 in Washington D.C. Ms. Vani Rao, Additional Secretary (Americas) in the Ministry of External Affairs, Mr. Donald Lu, Assistant Secretary of State (South and Central Asian Affairs) and Dr. Ely Ratner, Assistant Secretary of Defense (Indo-Pacific Security Affairs) led the respective delegations.
2.Both sides reviewed implementation of outcomes of the 2+2 Ministerial pertaining to bilateral cooperation in defence, counter-terrorism, maritime security, education, health, climate and clean energy, critical technologies, space, and people-to-people linkages. They discussed ways to further strengthen the Major Defence Partnership, including in new and emerging areas in the defence domain such as space, AI and cyber.
3.The 5th India-US Maritime Security Dialogue (MSD) was held on 08 September 2022 in New Delhi. The Indian delegation comprised of Mr. Sandeep Arya, Additional Secretary (Disarmament & International Security Affairs), Ms. Vani Rao, Additional Secretary (Americas), Ministry of External Affairs and Mr. Dinesh Kumar, Joint Secretary (Maritime &Systems), Ministry of Defence. Assistant Secretary of State Donald Lu and Assistant Secretary of Defence for Indo-Pacific Security Affairs, Dr. Ely Ratner, led the US delegation. Senior officials from Ministry of External Affairs, Ministry of Defence, NSCS, Indian Navy and Indian Coast Guard participated in the MSD.
4.During MSD, the two sides discussed developments in the global maritime domain, bilateral maritime cooperation endeavors, regional support initiatives and collaborative efforts such as Indo-Pacific Partnership for Maritime Domain Awareness. They affirmed their shared desire to enhance maritime security internationally and strengthen cooperation towards a free, open and inclusive maritime order that would support security, inclusive growth and prosperity.
5.During these dialogues, the officials had an opportunity to discuss regional issues pertaining to South Asia, Indian Ocean Region and the Indo-Pacific. The two sides agreed to remain engaged with the objective of further enhancing the depth and substance of the India-US Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership.
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