Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday held talks on Afghanistan, the West Asian region and the Korean peninsula with the visiting U.S. National Security Adviser, Lt. General H.R. McMaster.
Lt. Gen. McMaster, the first high official of the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump to visit India, met Mr. Modi after completing his trips to Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Challenge of terrorism
“Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster shared his perspective with Prime Minister on the security situation in the extended region, including in Afghanistan, West Asia and the DPRK [Democratic People’s Republic of Korea]. During the conversation, they exchanged views on how both countries can work together to effectively address the challenge of terrorism and to advance regional peace, security and stability,” a press release from the Prime Minister’s Office stated.
The meeting, however, did not yield an announcement of a date for Mr. Modi’s visit to Washington. The meeting held at the Prime Minister’s official residence was attended by India’s National Security Adviser Ajit Doval, Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar and a few other officials. The formal meeting was preceded by a meeting between Mr. Doval and Lt. Gen. McMaster.
Earlier, the U.S. NSA and Mr. Doval held detailed discussions on India-U.S. relations, especially the security aspect of the ties, sources said. Lt. Gen. McMaster arrived here on Monday evening from Pakistan, where he met Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and top officials of the Pakistan government.
The relations between India and Pakistan figured in Lt. Gen. McMaster’s discussions with Mr. Sharif. The Sharif government also briefed the U.S. official about the situation in Kashmir and ties with India and Afghanistan.
During his stopover in Kabul, Lt. Gen. McMastertold an Afghan TV channel that Pakistan should deal with terror “less selectively” than it had done in the past.
Major defence partner
A U.S. Embassy statement issued after the departure of Lt. Gen. McMaster later in the day said that the bilateral talks “emphasised the importance of the U.S.-India strategic relationship and reaffirmed India’s designation as a major defence partner”.
The two sides discussed a range of bilateral and regional issues, including their shared interest in increasing defence and counter-terrorism cooperation, it said.
