India-US Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership is firmly anchored in a shared commitment to democratic values, Shringla said

Maintaining that Indo-Pacific is an important aspect of the growing convergence between India and the US, Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla on Thursday said the Quad is committed to advancing the security and economic interests of countries situated in the Indo-Pacific region.

Foreign Secretary Shringla said this in his remarks at the 5th India-US Forum.

“All of us would agree that, today, strong India-US ties contribute not just to our respective domestic transformations, but also towards ensuring a free, open and inclusive Indo-Pacific region and global peace and stability,” he stated.

Noting that the Indo-Pacific is an important aspect of growing convergence between India and the US, Shringla said as vibrant and pluralistic democracies with shared values, New Delhi and Washington DC share the vision of a peaceful, stable and prosperous Indo-Pacific, where there is respect for international law, freedom of navigation, territorial integrity and sovereignty, and peaceful settlement of disputes.

Discussing India-US bilateral relations, he said, “It bears reiterating that the Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership between India and the US is firmly anchored in a shared commitment to democratic values and common strategic interests.”

“With a strong foundation for bilateral ties; growing strategic convergence; and strong support in the US and India for the relationship, we are confident of implementing the forward-looking roadmap laid down by our leaders for the India-US partnership,” the Foreign Secretary further stated.

“The growing convergence in our strategic perspectives can in large part be attributed to the natural affinity between our people. The people-to-people connections reflect our complementary strengths in the domains of knowledge, talent, education and innovation,” he argued.

According to Shringla, the two countries have been in regular contact to deepen bilateral engagement and work together on contemporary regional and global issues, including the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Our dialogue and engagement across sectors, including trade and investment, healthcare, critical technologies, climate action, clean energy, defence and security, education and innovation, has been positive and constructive,” he mentioned.

“Leaders from both countries have intensified the momentum of engagement and displayed their intent to widen the scope of the bilateral partnership to include collaboration on global issues of shared interest,” the Foreign Secretary said.

This was most evident during Prime Minister Modi’s recent visit to the US for his first formal interaction with President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris and the first in-person Quad Leaders’ Summit, he added.

“The visit not only provided the leaders an opportunity to have an in-depth conversation on bilateral matters but also involved substantive discussions on global and regional issues, ranging from the COVID-19 pandemic and climate change to terrorism and the situation in Afghanistan,” Shringla explained.

“The Prime Minister and President Biden later met on the sidelines of the G20 and COP26 Summits to deliberate, announce and endorse important initiatives aimed at global economic recovery, climate action and sustainable development,” he further informed.

“All of us would agree that, today, strong India-US ties contribute not just to our respective domestic transformations, but also towards ensuring a free, open and inclusive Indo-Pacific region and global peace and stability,” the Foreign Secretary submitted.

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