- Wednesday, March 12, 2025
By: PTI
India’s external affairs minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar met US secretary of state Antony Blinken on Thursday (4) discussed the situation in Sri Lanka, developments in Myanmar and other pressing global challenges at a meeting in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, where the two have reached for the ASEAN (Association of South East Asian Nations) foreign ministers’ meeting.
It is understood that the rising tensions between China and Taiwan following US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s high-profile visit to Taipei also figured in the talks that took place on the margins of an ASEAN conclave in the Cambodian capital.
“A warm conversation to start meetings on sidelines of ASEAN Ministerial in Phnom Penh. Discussed the ever strengthening India-US relationship and the global situation with US Secretary of State @SecBlinken,” Jaishankar tweeted.
A warm conversation to start meetings on sidelines of ASEAN Ministerial in Phnom Penh.
Discussed the ever strengthening India-US relationship and the global situation with US Secretary of State @SecBlinken. pic.twitter.com/JzcrBSklx4
— Dr. S. Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar) August 4, 2022
In his opening remarks at the meeting, Blinken said the US and India are strong proponents of the ASEAN centrality in the Indo-Pacific, according to the US state department.
“We’re both strong proponents of ASEAN centrality. We have a shared vision together for a free and open Indo-Pacific that we work on in so many different ways every single day,” he said.
“And of course, we have some immediate challenges that we’re both concerned with, to include the situation in Sri Lanka, Burma, and a number of other hot spots,” he said.
“So I very much look forward to once again being able to go through a number of these issues with my friend, and then we’ll both head over to our meetings,” Blinken added.
The US diplomat later said in a tweet about his meeting with Jaishankar, “I met with Indian External Affairs Minister
@DrSJaishankar today in Phnom Penh to discuss the implications of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine and Sri Lanka’s economic and political situation.”
I met with Indian External Affairs Minister @DrSJaishankar today in Phnom Penh to discuss the implications of Russia's aggression against Ukraine and Sri Lanka’s economic and political situation. pic.twitter.com/I0Hr4MC066
— Secretary Antony Blinken (@SecBlinken) August 4, 2022
