EAM Jaishankar begins six-day US visit today to discuss bilateral ties

Foreign Minister S Jaishankar is set to embark on a significant visit to the United States from Tuesday, December 24 to December 29, 2024, ahead of the inauguration of the new Trump Administration.

- SIMONTINI BHATTACHARJEE

NEW DELHI: During his visit, Jaishankar will engage with his American counterparts to discuss a range of bilateral, regional, and global issues.

Additionally, he will chair a conference of the Consul Generals of India in the USA. The visit of the foreign minister is significant as bilateral cooperation between India and the US is further expected to strengthen across several key sectors. Energy cooperation is likely to shift back to expanding hydrocarbon trade, moving away from combating climate change. However, India's climate progress has been driven by domestic imperatives rather than bilateral or multilateral support. US climate cooperation with India is expected to be led by philanthropies, city and state governments, and other institutions, similar to the 2017-2021 period.

Defence cooperation between the two nations is also expected to expand. Both major US political parties agree that China plays a destabilising role in the Indo-Pacific, and America has a strong interest in building partnerships to improve stability. The American approach to relations with India may become more transactional, but the significance of the partnership was well understood by officials in the first Trump administration and supported by President Trump himself.