Jaishankar to meet US Secretary of State Rubio in New York on Monday amid tariff, H-1B visa concerns
New York (PTI): External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will meet US Secretary of State Marco Rubio here on Monday for bilateral discussions, as the high-level 80th session of the UN General Assembly (UNGA) kicks in.
This will be the first face-to-face meeting between Rubio and Jaishankar following President Donald Trump's imposition of an additional 25 per cent tariff on India for Delhi's purchases of Russian oil, taking the total levies imposed on India by the Trump White House to 50 per cent.
According to the daily schedule issued by the State Department on Sunday, Rubio will meet Jaishankar in New York City on Monday morning.
They had last met in July in Washington DC for the Quad Foreign Ministers' Meeting. The bilateral meeting comes on the same day India and the US will hold discussions towards achieving an early conclusion of a trade agreement.
A delegation led by Union Commerce and Industries Minister Piyush Goyal will meet with the US side on Monday in the city. "The delegation plans to take forward the discussions with a view to achieving early conclusion of a mutually beneficial Trade Agreement," the Ministry of Commerce and Industry had said in a statement.
The statement added that during the last visit of the team of officials from the office of the United States Trade Representative to India on September 16, positive discussions were held on various aspects of the trade deal, and it was decided to intensify efforts in this regard.
Jaishankar arrived in New York on Sunday for the high-level UNGA week, commencing his engagements with a bilateral meeting with the Philippines Secretary of Foreign Affairs, Theresa P. Lazaro.
"We followed up on the recent State Visit of President @bongbongmarcos to India. Also discussed our cooperation in the UN and the Indo-Pacific region,” the external affairs minister said on X.
According to a daily schedule issued by the State Department on Sunday, Rubio will meet Jaishankar in New York City on Monday morning for a bilateral meeting.
Lazaro said it was a pleasure to meet Jaishankar again after President Bongbong Marcos's "successful" state visit to India in August. "Our discussion today reaffirms our two countries’ commitment as Strategic Partners to actively develop cooperation in political, defence and security, the maritime domain, etc," she said.
Jaishankar will hold a series of bilateral and multilateral meetings during the week on the sidelines of the high-level UNGA session and will deliver the national statement at the General Debate on September 27 from the iconic green UNGA podium.
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India moving towards becoming global economic powerhouse: Kovind
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Amritsar (PTI): Former president Ram Nath Kovind on Friday said that with digital transformation, economic reforms and a strong focus on the ease of doing business, India is moving towards becoming a global economic powerhouse.
He was speaking after inaugurating the 19th edition of the Punjab International Trade Expo (PITEX) in Amritsar.
The former president said that this 19th edition of PITEX is being organised at a time when India is recognised as one of the fastest-growing large economies in the world.
Speaking at the inaugural ceremony of the event organised by the PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PHDCCI) the former president, while referring to Punjab, said the state is a living example of courage, sacrifice and enterprise.
"The spiritual light of Sri Harmandir Sahib (Golden Temple) inspires peace and humanity across the world. The heritage of Punjab is deep and inspiring," Kovind said, according to a statement issued by the PITEX.
The former president congratulated the PHDCCI for hosting the 19th edition of PITEX and suggested that the chamber should expand PITEX outside Punjab.
He proposed that a similar event should also be held in New Delhi.
