KUALA LUMPUR: US Secretary of State Marco Rubio met with India’s External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar on Monday as both sides sought to advance trade talks and ease tensions over Washington’s tariff measures.
While few details were disclosed, the meeting marks the highest-level engagement between the two countries since the United States imposed sanctions last week on Russian oil firms, a key source of India’s crude imports.
Jaishankar shared a photo on social media of his handshake with Rubio, writing that he “appreciated the discussion on our bilateral ties as well as regional and global issues.”
The meeting took place on the sidelines of the Southeast Asian Summit in Malaysia, attended in person by US President Donald Trump and virtually by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Relations between Washington and New Delhi have been strained since August, when the United States raised tariffs to 50 percent, accusing India of helping finance Russia’s war in Ukraine by purchasing discounted oil from Moscow.
Trump, who held a phone conversation with Modi last week, later claimed that the Indian leader had agreed to reduce Russian oil imports, a statement that New Delhi has not confirmed.
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