During a press conference in Washington, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar clarified that India and the United States have built their strategic partnership on intrinsic bilateral strengths, and not on considerations related to third countries such as Pakistan.
Responding to a question about whether Pakistan affects India-US ties, Jaishankar dismissed the notion outright, stating, “Big relationships are not forged in terms of third countries. The central factor in the relationship between India and the US is India and the US. It is our complementarity.”
Highlighting India’s rising global stature, Jaishankar noted that New Delhi no longer needs to measure its foreign relations through the lens of others.
“We are a big country, among the top five economies of the world, and the most populous nation. Our influence is growing. We must have that confidence.”
He emphasised that trade, technology, energy, defence, and mobility increasingly drive India-US cooperation, and also asserted that these areas will shape future engagements between the two democracies.
EAM Jaishankar also responded to US President Donald Trump’s claim of having played a role in brokering a ceasefire between India and Pakistan following Operation Sindoor.
He firmly refuted the claim, “The record of what happened is very clear. The ceasefire was something that was negotiated between the DGMOs of India and Pakistan.”
He added that Lieutenant General Rajiv Ghai of India and Major General Kashif Abdullah of Pakistan held the discussions directly without any external mediation.
Jaishankar is in the US capital for the Quad Ministerial Meeting, where he met with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Australia’s Foreign Minister Penny Wong, and Japan’s Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya.
Meanwhile, the leaders condemned the recent Pahalgam massacre, attributed to The Resistance Front, a Pakistan-backed terror outfit linked to Lashkar-e-Toiba. This reaffirmed their shared stance on counterterrorism.
Jaishankar also held bilateral meetings with Secretary Rubio, as well as US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth and Energy Secretary Chris Wright, where discussions focused on defence cooperation, energy partnerships, and mobility frameworks.
The visit marks a continued deepening of India-US ties, with Jaishankar noting that his discussions involved a stock-taking of bilateral progress and plans for future cooperation.
He reiterated that the defence and energy sectors are robust enough to merit independent focus going forward.
The message from Washington was clear: India defines its relationship with the US through its own strength, not under the influence of others.
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