Rubio in India: An Attempt to Smooth Over Differences and Strengthen Cooperation

The U.S. Secretary of State’s visit to India and the meeting of the foreign ministers of the “QUAD” countries confirmed a commitment to strengthening the strategic partnership, despite differences.

During the working visit, Rubio held talks with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar, and the Prime Minister’s National Security Advisor A. Doval, during which the guest sought to resolve accumulated issues, primarily in the trade and economic sphere, and to continue the course toward further rapprochement between the states, including on the well-known anti-China and anti-Russia basis.

Rubio had to justify himself

The talks focused on strengthening strategic cooperation in the areas of security, defense, trade, and investment. Apparently, Marco Rubio had to defend Washington’s tough tariff and customs policies toward India, as well as restrictions on purchases of Russian energy resources. The Secretary of State emphasized the need to conclude a trade agreement with India in the near future in order to meet the goal of doubling trade volume to $500 billion by 2030 (currently around $145 billion).

During the discussion of global and regional issues, certain disagreements arose regarding New Delhi’s policy of close cooperation with Russia and within the BRICS framework, as well as its efforts to establish contacts with China despite existing difficulties. The Americans also appear........

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