US official says ties with India intensified in first 100 days of President Joe Biden's administration
The relationship between India and the United States has intensified in the first 100 days of the Biden administration, a State Department official said here.
The engagement between the two countries during this period reflects a global comprehensive partnership, State Department spokesperson Ned Price said, asserting that there has been a concerted focus on India over these 100 days.
"There's been a concerted focus on India over the past 100 days. President Biden, of course, did make mention of India in his (State of the Union) address last night, and I think you can look at that deep partnership and commitment to partnership through any number of lenses," Price said at his daily news conference.
Biden himself had an opportunity to speak to Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently. Secretary of State Tony Blinken has engaged with his counterpart, Foreign Minister S Jaishankar, several times as well, he said.
There have been several high-level delegations. Special Envoy on Climate Change John Kerry was in India not all that long ago. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin was in India to discuss elements of India-US security cooperation, Price said.
"We have engaged with India in a multilateral context as well through the Quad, both at the ministerial level and, for the first time ever, at the leader level," he said.
"I have mentioned our climate cooperation, but also our health cooperation, and this was something that predates the pandemic but has intensified with the onset of the pandemic and even further with the uptick in cases that we have seen in India in recent days," Price said.
"So, I think it is this engagement that reflects our global comprehensive partnership," he said in response to a question.
Less time to read?
Try Quickreads
-
Saudi blast suspect kills self with suicide belt: Officials
A suspect in a deadly 2015 Islamic State group attack on a Saudi mosque blew Saudi national Abdullah bin Zayed al-Bakri al-Shehri up while being arrested by security forces in Jeddah this week, Saudi officials said on Friday. Four others were wounded when Saudi national Abdullah bin Zayed al-Bakri al-Shehri set off the explosives belt, the official said. He was one of nine men wanted for the blast that killed 15 people -- mostly police -- near the Yemen border.
-
Rishi Sunak faces losing battle in race to be UK PM, Liz Truss likely to win
Amid the race for the Conservative party leadership, British Prime Minister hopeful Rishi Sunak has vowed to support the most vulnerable people of the UK amid the rising energy crisis in the country. The Conservative party leadership results are just a few weeks away but it looks like Liz Truss's victory over Rishi Sunak is imminent. Not only this, independent surveys and polls have shown Truss consistently scoring ahead of Rishi Sunak.
-
Drought declared in England amid extreme hot weather
England is officially in a drought across vast swathes of the country, the government's Environment Agency has announced, as another heat wave intensifies and water companies impose restrictions on household use. Parts of western, southern, central and eastern England were put into “drought” status following a meeting of the National Drought Group on Friday. The UK is currently struggling on many fronts. The drought is not only affecting England.
-
Why mutation of BA.5 lineages is a matter of concern? WHO highlights
About 99 per cent of the coronavirus sequences reported globally in a month - between July 8 and August 8 - were linked to the Omicron variant, the World Health Organization has said in its latest weekly bulletin, highlighting that “BA.5 descendent lineages” are increasing in diversity. The world health body has said it has been tracking an increase in prevalence and change in vital characteristics of the lineages.
-
Trump calls for 'immediate' release of Mar-a-Lago search warrant
Former President Donald Trump called late Thursday for the “immediate” release of the federal warrant the FBI used to search his Florida estate, hours after the Justice Department had asked a court to unseal the warrant, with Attorney General Merrick Garland citing the “substantial public interest in this matter.” The Justice Department request earlier Thursday is striking because such documents traditionally remain sealed during a pending investigation.
