Second India-US 2+2 dialogue to be held on December 18 in Washington: MEA

The second India-US 2+2 Ministerial dialogue will be held in Washington on December 18, the ministry of external Affairs announced on Thursday.

"The Second India-U.S. 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue will be held in Washington, D.C. on 18 December 2019. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar will lead the Indian delegation," MEA Spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said while addressing a press conference here.

The two ministers will meet their US counterparts for a "comprehensive review of cross-cutting foreign policy and defence and security issues" in relations. Both sides will "exchange views" on salient regional and global issues.

The India-U.S. 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue was initiated in September 2018.

The MEA spokesperson said since the inaugural edition of this dialogue in September 2018, relations between India and the U.S. have further expanded.

"The 2+2 Dialogue will take stock of these growing relations and provide strategic guidance for their further development," he said.

The first round of the meeting on the 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue was held in New Delhi in September 2018 and had focused on the need for upholding peaceful resolution of territorial maritime disputes, promoting market-based economics, supporting good governance, fundamental rights, and liberties, and preventing external economic coercion.

The Dialogue was held between US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Secretary of Defense James Mattis, Indian External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.

The 2+2 Dialogue between India and the US was launched as a reflection of the shared commitment by Prime Minister Modi and US President Donald Trump to provide a positive, forward-looking vision for the India-US strategic partnership and to promote synergy in their diplomatic and security efforts, the US Embassy had said in its statement.

( With inputs from ANI )