Jaswant Singh to visit U.S.

By Atul Aneja

NEW DELHI, MARCH 9. The External Affairs Minister, Mr. Jaswant Singh, is expected to visit the United States to establish a first ministerial contact with the Bush administration.

According to highly placed sources in the Government, Mr. Singh may visit Washington between March-end and the middle of April.

Sources said the visit which is under consideration may see Indo- U.S. contacts at the Foreign Ministerial level acquiring a new format. During the Clinton administration, Mr. Singh held ten rounds of talks with the U.S. Deputy Secretary of State, Mr. Strobe Talbott.

vThe ``vision document'' signed during Mr. Clinton's visit to India calls for a regular dialogue between the Indian External Affairs Minister and the U.S. Secretary of State, the sources said.

Apart from post-Pokharan sanctions, Mr. Singh's visit may trigger a high level economic and security dialogue between the Indian establishment and the Bush administration.

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Section  : National
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