New Delhi, Jun 26: US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo met Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday and discussed various aspects of the bilateral relationship to strengthen the India-US strategic partnership.
Pompeo, who arrived here last night, will hold detailed discussions with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar in the afternoon and have a working lunch with him.
"Working together to further deepen our strategic partnership. Secretary Pompeo called on PM Narendra Modi to exchange views on various aspects of Indo-US relationship. PM will meet President Donald Trump on the sidelines of the upcoming G20 Osaka Summit," Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Raveesh Kumar tweeted along with pictures of the meeting.
Ahead of the strategically-important India-US talks, diplomatic sources on Tuesday said India meets the US waiver criteria for procuring the S-400 missile defence system from sanctions-hit Russia, and asserted that New Delhi cannot "wish away" its defence ties with Moscow.
Russia's most advanced long-range surface-to-air missile defence system, the S-400 was first bought by China to seal a government-to-government deal with Russia in 2014.
After talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin, a deal for the S-400 air defence system deal, between India and Russia was made in October last year.
Besides India's missile defence system deal with Russia, terrorism, H-1B visas, trade and the situation arising out of US sanctions on buying oil from Iran, are likely to be discussed on Wednesday during the talks between Jaishankar and Pompeo.
H-1B Visa:
The H-1B visa, popular among Indian IT professionals, is a non-immigrant visa that allows US companies to employ foreign workers in speciality occupations that require theoretical or technical expertise.
"Indians have contributed under the H-1B programme to the US economy, and I think the Secretary will be able to assure the Indian leadership that we have no plans to place caps on H-1B work visas for nations that are having foreign companies store data locally," a Senior State Department official told reporters during a conference call, according to PTI.
The H-1B visa programme is the main vehicle through which US employers can sponsor skilled foreign workers for admission. The Senior State Department Official appreciated the steps India has taken to reduce its crude oil imports from Iran.
Trade:
The Trump administration wants Prime Minister Narendra Modi to lower trade barriers and embrace fair and reciprocal trade, the United States said on Tuesday. Bilateral trade is likely to be an important topic of discussion during Pompeo talks with the Indian leadership. US companies see great opportunity in India, and increased economic openness and investment will yield mutual benefit.
Pompeo's meeting:
Pompeo's talks here will be the first high-level interaction between the two countries after return of the Modi government to power last month.
Pompeo's visit comes ahead of a meeting between US President Donald Trump and Modi on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in Osaka, Japan later this week.
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