Washington: Indian ambassador Taranjit Singh Sandhu met Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Tuesday (local time) at the end-of-year event at the US State Department.

Sandhu also met Evan M Ryan, the spouse of Antony Blinken, at the event.

In a post on X (formerly Twitter), the Indian envoy to the US wrote, "A pleasure to meet Secretary of State @SecBlinken and @EvanMRyan at the end of the year event at State Department @StateDept."

Recently, the Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, approved the draft Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the US and India to enhance innovation ecosystems through an Innovation Handshake.

The 5th India-US Commercial Dialogue was held on March 10 during the visit of US Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo between March 8 and 10.

During the meeting, the Commercial Dialogue was re-launched with a strategic focus on supply chain resiliency, climate and clean technology cooperation, advancing inclusive digital economy, and facilitating post-pandemic economic recovery, particularly SMEs and start-ups, according to Cabinet's press release.

It included the launch of a new Working Group on talent, innovation and inclusive growth (TIIG) under the Commercial Dialogue.

US President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Narendra Modi in June welcomed efforts to establish an "Innovation Handshake" that shall connect the two sides' dynamic startup ecosystems, address specific regulatory hurdles to cooperation, and promote innovation and job growth, particularly in critical and emerging technologies (CET).

In order to formalize the cooperation under the Innovation Handshake and implement the guidance, a government-to-government MoU has been signed between India and the US on Innovation Handshake in San Francisco on November 14.

Moreover, Union commerce minister Piyush Goyal and his US counterpart Gina Raimondo led an industry roundtable and officially launched the two countries' ambitious "Innovation Handshake" agenda, which President Biden and Prime Minister Modi previewed during the Prime Minister's historic June 2023 official State Visit earlier this year.

During the event, Raimondo said, "Through the Innovation Handshake, the United States and India are forging a critical tech partnership that will further strengthen our interconnected innovation ecosystem."

"This is an important step to bolster the US-India commercial relationship and I look forward to building on this progress with Minister Goyal to help US and Indian workers and businesses succeed," she added.

Meanwhile, Piyush Goyal had said, "The Innovation Handshake signals a joint commitment to strengthen the start-up ecosystem and promote cooperation in Critical and Emerging Technologies between India and the United States."