India-U.S. diplomats and defence officials meet to set agenda at ‘2+2 intersessional dialogue’ in Delhi

Senior Indian and U.S. officials discussed global issues, including the Russia-Ukraine conflict and Israeli operations in Gaza during a ‘2+2 intersessional dialogue’ in Delhi, as defence officials and diplomats met ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the U.S. this week. Mr. Modi will attend the Quad summit in Wilmington, hosted by American President Joseph Biden for leaders of the U.S., India, Japan and Australia on Saturday , which a Senior State Department official said will be “historic”.

Announcing Mr. Modi’s visit, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said on Tuesday that he will be in the U.S. from September 21-23. “At the Quad Summit, the leaders will review the progress achieved by the Quad over the last one year and set the agenda for the year ahead to assist the countries of the Indo-Pacific region in meeting their development goals and aspirations,” the MEA said, outlooking plans for Mr. Modi to address a diaspora event on Sunday; hold meetings with business leaders of AI, semiconductors and other technology fields; speak at the UN ‘Summit of the Future’; and meet with other leaders present in New York.

During the meeting in Delhi, held on Monday, U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Donald Lu and Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense Jedidiah Royal met with their Indian counterparts, the MEA Joint Secretary for the Americas Nagaraj Naidu, and Ministry of Defence Joint Secretary for International Cooperation Vishwesh Negito, to discuss “bilateral strategic and defence priorities, alongside regional and global issues”, the MEA said on Tuesday. However, neither side gave details on their discussions on the situation in Bangladesh, where Mr. Lu had visited over the last few days.

“The officials discussed a range of issues, across the Indo-Pacific and worldwide, including support for a just and durable peace in Ukraine, as well as support for a ceasefire and humanitarian assistance in Gaza,” the U.S. State Department said in a readout that included talks on “defence cooperation, space and civil aviation collaboration, clean energy cooperation, and industrial and logistics coordination”.

While it is unclear whether the issues in Ukraine and Gaza will find mention in the joint statement after the leaders meet, as the Quad focuses on “Indo-Pacific” issues, it is likely that the leaders will hold discussions on the way forward on both. The meeting in Delaware, Mr. Biden’s home State will also be a farewell, as both Mr. Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida are going to step down in the next few months, while Mr. Albanese faces General Election in Australia in 2025. It also follows Mr. Modi’s visit to Russia and Ukraine, and India’s possible role in negotiations are expected to be discussed.

According to sources aware of the planning for the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (QSD) meeting, the leaders are also expected to focus on strengthening cooperation on semiconductors and building a “more secure” environment in the region through critical and emerging technologies. They would also speak about enhancing Indo-Pacific Maritime Domain Awareness (IPMDA) mechanisms, including possible joint operations in the oceans in the future. New Delhi has reiterated that the Quad is not a “security framework”, unlike other recent U.S. initiatives in the Indo-Pacific region, including the AUKUS arrangement for nuclear submarines with the U.K. and Australia, and other structures with U.S. allies South Korea, Philippines, and New Zealand.

Speaking at a think tank event organised by the Hudson Institute in Washington, U.S. Deputy Secretary of State and former Ambassador to India Richard Verma said that the Quad does not require to take on a “military character”, explaining that India is “not supportive of that”.

“[Quad] has a positive impact on security without being a treaty-based security organization. I think there’s great promise and excitement in the quad…[and] this weekend’s meeting will be quite significant. I think it’ll be historic, and I think the quad will continue to build in many, many ways,” Mr. Verma said.

(With Inputs From Agencies)