Secretary of state Michael Pompeo is visiting India next week against a backdrop of trade tensions between the two countries. Pompeo will meet his Indian counterpart S Jaishankar next week

The US on Friday reiterated its reservations about India’s S-400 missile system deal with Russia and said it was encouraging that India was looking at alternatives including from Washington. Secretary of state Michael Pompeo is visiting India next week against a backdrop of trade tensions between the two countries.

“With respect to S-400, we are urging all our allies and partners, India included, to forgo transactions with Russia that risk triggering CAATSA (Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act)... This is a time we will be encouraging India to look at alternatives,” an American government source said.

The US has been offering India advanced defence technology on a par with its allies Japan, South Korea and Australia, the source said, adding India has been placed in the same class as NATO allies.

The Ministry of External Affairs had earlier made it clear that India had no plans to scrap its S-400 deal with Russia despite the US posturing. The Indian government is not comfortable with Donald Trump administration repeatedly trying to dissuade India from purchasing the S-400 system.

Pompeo, who will meet his Indian counterpart S Jaishankar next week, will help prepare ground for a meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Trump in Osaka at the G-20 summit. The visit will focus on a host of irritants — defence purchases from Russia, trade issues, H-1B visa cap, data localisation and oil imports from Iran. On the brighter side, Pompeo and Jaishankar will look at widening the Indo-Pacific partnership.

Pompeo would hold candid talks on trade issues and level-playing field for US companies in India with Indian interlocutors, the source mentioned earlier, said, adding the Trump administration was willing to assist the Modi government in creating jobs.