Jaishankar meets FBI Director Kash Patel to strengthen counterterror and defence ties
In a post on X, Jaishankar stated, "Great to meet @FBIDirectorKash today. Appreciate our strong cooperation in countering organised crime, drug trafficking and terrorism."
https://x.com/DrSJaishankar/status/1940536029238514011
Earlier, Jaishankar in a meeting with US Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard said that they discussed the global situation and bilateral cooperation.
"Delighted to meet US DNI @TulsiGabbard in Washington, DC this afternoon. A good exchange on the global situation and our bilateral cooperation," Jaishankar posted on X.
https://x.com/DrSJaishankar/status/1940498425860313590
On Tuesday (local time), Jaishankar held a meeting with US Energy Secretary Chris Wright in Washington, DC and spoke about the energy transformation underway in India. The two leaders discussed opportunities for a deeper energy partnership between the two nations.
In a post shared on X, Jaishankar stated, "A useful conversation with US @ENERGY @SecretaryWright in Washington DC this evening. Spoke about the energy transformation underway in India. And opportunities for a deeper India-US energy partnership."
The External Affairs Minister US Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth and held discussion on advancing defence partnership between two nations, building on growing convergences of interests, capabilities and responsibilities.
"Great to meet @SecDef Pete Hegseth in Washington DC today. Had a productive conversation on advancing the India-US defence partnership, building on growing convergences of interests, capabilities and responsibilities," Jaishankar posted on X.
https://x.com/DrSJaishankar/status/1940125115229811044
Jaishankar is on an official visit to the US at the invitation of US Secretary of State Marco Rubio. During the visit, he participated in the Quad Foreign Ministers Meeting (QFMM).
In a post on X, Jaishankar stated, "Just finished a very productive meeting of Quad Foreign Ministers in Washington DC. Discussed how to make Quad more focused and impactful on contemporary opportunities and challenges. Today's gathering will strengthen strategic stability in the Indo - Pacific and keep it free and open."
Jaishankar met US State Secretary Marco Rubio on the sidelines of Quad Foreign Ministers' Meeting (QFFM) in Washington and discussed bilateral partnership between both countries in the field of security, critical technologies, connectivity, energy and mobility.
Sharing a post on X, Jaishankar stated, 'A pleasure meeting US @SecRubio this afternoon, on the sidelines of Quad Foreign Ministers' meeting. Discussed our bilateral partnership, including trade, security, critical technologies, connectivity, energy and mobility. Shared perspectives on regional and global developments.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
&w=3840&q=100)
First Post
15 minutes ago
- First Post
Lithium, hydrocarbons, uranium…: Critical mineral reserves in countries PM Modi visits on 5-nation tour
As the global race for resources intensifies, Prime Minister Modi's five-nation tour signals India's resolve to secure its economic future through strategic mineral diplomacy read more As India sharpens its focus on securing critical minerals to drive its green energy and industrial ambitions, Prime Minister Narendra Modi's ongoing five-nation tour holds profound strategic significance. His visits to Ghana, Trinidad & Tobago, Argentina and Namibia — each rich in key mineral and energy resources — highlight India's evolving mineral diplomacy. This diplomatic offensive is geared toward building long-term partnerships in sectors such as lithium mining, hydrocarbons, uranium supply and rare earth elements, ensuring sustainable access to the raw materials needed for India's technological transformation. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Apart from the four countries mentioned above, Prime Minister Modi's itinerary also includes Brazil, where he will travel from July 5 to 8. His visit will serve a dual purpose of attending the 17th Brics Summit in Rio de Janeiro and undertaking a formal State Visit. At the summit, the prime minister will engage with fellow Briocs leaders on pressing global challenges ranging from reforming international institutions and fostering global peace to advancing multilateral cooperation, ethical AI development, climate resilience, global public health and economic stability. A series of one-on-one meetings with other world leaders is also expected on the margins of the summit. Following the Brics deliberations, Prime Minister Modi will head to Brasília for high-level talks with President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. Their dialogue is set to deepen the India–Brazil Strategic Partnership, with a focus on boosting collaboration across key sectors including trade, defence, renewable energy, space exploration, digital innovation, sustainable agriculture, healthcare and people-to-people ties. Ghana: West Africa's lithium gateway and beyond Once primarily known for its exports of gold and cocoa, Ghana is increasingly seen as a key player in the global lithium supply chain. Ranking 10th globally and third in Africa in terms of lithium reserves, Ghana's west coast has become central to discussions on critical minerals. The lithium discovered in Ghana in 2018 has brought the country into the spotlight, especially as the world transitions to electric mobility and battery storage systems. This rise in mineral prominence aligns with India's green energy roadmap. Lithium is essential to the manufacture of lithium-ion batteries that power electric vehicles (EVs), smartphones and energy storage systems — technologies at the heart of India's energy security strategy. In light of this, Prime Minister Modi's visit to Ghana, the first by an Indian head of government in over three decades reflects a reinvigorated partnership anchored on shared resource interests. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD India has responded with an economic commitment, extending a line of credit worth approximately $450 million to Ghana, targeted at critical sectors like lithium, manganese and bauxite. According to the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre, Indian companies have invested in over 820 projects worth nearly $2 billion since 1994, positioning India as Ghana's second-largest investor by number of projects in 2024. Beyond trade, Prime Minister Modi and President John Mahama upgraded bilateral relations to a Comprehensive Partnership, focussing on energy, maritime security, defence and digital infrastructure. The two countries also signed Memoranda of Understanding covering areas such as traditional medicine, standards cooperation and cultural exchanges. With increasing Indian involvement in lithium exploration and capacity building, Ghana is poised to play a significant role in India's mineral security framework. Trinidad & Tobago: Energy diplomacy in the Caribbean Trinidad & Tobago, the largest producer of oil and natural gas in the Caribbean, represents a crucial energy partner for India. Positioned just north of Venezuela — a country with some of the world's largest hydrocarbon reserves — Trinidad & Tobago has a well-established petroleum industry dating back over a century. The country boasts one of the largest natural gas processing facilities in the Western Hemisphere and is the world's top exporter of ammonia and the second-largest exporter of methanol, as per data from IHS Global Insight. With global demand for clean-burning fuels increasing, Trinidad & Tobago's vast hydrocarbon reserves provide a vital option for India to diversify its energy imports. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD During his two-day visit beginning July 3, Prime Minister Modi shall meet with President Christine Carla Kangaloo and Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar to bolster bilateral relations that span not just energy, but also digital infrastructure, pharmaceuticals, renewable energy and disaster resilience. The focus on areas such as FinTech and digital payments — where India has considerable expertise — highlights the complementarity in the India-Trinidad & Tobago relationship. Given that nearly half of Trinidad & Tobago's population is of Indian origin, the visit also celebrated longstanding cultural and historical bonds while laying the groundwork for deeper strategic cooperation. Argentina: South America's lithium powerhouse and energy frontier With lithium demand surging due to the proliferation of electric vehicles and energy storage technologies, Argentina has emerged as one of the most strategically important countries in the world. Holding the second-largest lithium reserves globally — constituting about 20.94 per cent of the world's total, or nearly 22 million tonnes — Argentina is at the centre of the Lithium Triangle, alongside Bolivia and Chile. This region alone hosts over half of the world's known lithium resources. Most of Argentina's lithium lies in brine deposits in salt flats, offering cost-effective extraction opportunities. The nation currently commands approximately 13 per cent of the global lithium resource market and is rapidly increasing its production, making it indispensable to the global battery supply chain. India's interest in Argentina extends beyond lithium. The South American country also holds the second-largest shale gas and fourth-largest shale oil reserves globally, with the Vaca Muerta formation in Neuquén Province seen as a future energy hub. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD These assets have drawn increasing attention from Indian public and private sector companies. In 2024, a landmark deal was struck between India's state-owned KABIL and Argentina's CAMYEN for the leasing and development of five lithium blocks in Catamarca. Further, India and Argentina have expanded cooperation in oil and gas through agreements between OVL and Argentina's YPF. Defence ties are also growing, marked by the supply of helicopter components by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited and technology exchanges with FAdeA. Trade between the two nations has seen significant growth, rebounding to $5.2 billion in 2024 after a previous year's downturn due to climate-related disruptions. With over $1.2 billion in Indian investments in Argentina, spanning IT, engineering and manufacturing, the strategic relationship is gaining traction. Prime Minister Modi's visit is expected to further galvanise these partnerships, ensuring Indian industries gain access to critical raw materials while offering technology and investment in return. Namibia: Uranium and rare earths for strategic autonomy Namibia, often overshadowed in global headlines, is increasingly seen as a linchpin in India's quest for nuclear fuel security and rare earth elements. As the third-largest producer of uranium in the world — contributing roughly 11 per cent to global supply — Namibia is vital to the global nuclear energy chain. The country's uranium production is poised for a significant upswing, as new mining projects come online in 2024 and beyond, according to the Chamber of Mines of Namibia. India is actively courting Namibia to secure stable uranium supplies for its civilian nuclear power programme. The visit by Prime Minister Modi to Namibia marks a strategic outreach to not just bolster uranium imports, but also explore cooperation in rare earth minerals such as neodymium, dysprosium and cobalt. These minerals are essential for the manufacture of high-efficiency motors, wind turbines and advanced electronics — sectors critical to India's technological future. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Namibia also boasts substantial reserves of diamonds and copper. Indian firms have invested heavily — over $800 million — in Namibia, particularly in diamond processing and services. Despite the fact that Namibia doesn't sell rough diamonds directly to India, Indian diamond traders access Namibian stones via hubs like Antwerp and London. Prime Minister Modi's visit could pave the way for more direct trade routes and collaborations in value addition. The country also ranks among the top 10 globally in rare earth element potential, offering India an opportunity to reduce its dependence on Chinese supply chains in this strategically sensitive domain. PM Modi's discussions in Namibia are expected to encompass defence cooperation, critical mineral exploration and deeper industrial partnerships. A mineral-driven diplomacy in action Prime Minister Narendra Modi's five-nation tour is not merely a diplomatic gesture; it is a manifestation of India's recalibrated foreign policy centred on energy security, mineral access and economic resilience. In each country, the bilateral agenda was carefully crafted around core Indian interests — securing lithium from Ghana and Argentina, hydrocarbons from Trinidad & Tobago and uranium and rare earths from Namibia. These strategic engagements are complemented by economic tools, including concessional credit lines, public-private investment and knowledge exchange. For instance, the $450 million credit to Ghana covers vital infrastructure like the Tema-Mpakadan railway line linking mineral-rich zones to export terminals. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD In Argentina, the public-sector KABIL's lithium acquisition marks a historic step in India's outward mineral acquisition strategy. From cultural diplomacy in Trinidad & Tobago to cutting-edge FinTech partnerships, India is broadening the definition of strategic engagement. At the heart of this diplomatic outreach is a desire to secure the critical minerals needed for energy transition, manufacturing expansion and digital transformation — three pillars of India's long-term development strategy. As the world races toward a resource-based geopolitical order, India's assertive mineral diplomacy, exemplified by Prime Minister Modi's five-nation tour, signals its intent to be a future-ready economy, securing its position in an increasingly competitive global resource arena.
&w=3840&q=100)
First Post
21 minutes ago
- First Post
PM Modi's Quad strategy: Using the Indo-Pacific platform to corner Pakistan
The Modi government's efforts to highlight Pakistan's state sponsorship of terrorism at the Quad meet is laudable. Now the ball is in the West's court to recognise this aspect and stop backing Islamabad in its own interest read more This week when the Quad foreign ministers met in Washington DC, the world was grappling with multiple conflicts. Among the usual concerns over China's continued belligerence in the South China Sea, what stood out was the Pahalgam terror attack where the ministers not only issued a strong condemnation of the attack that claimed lives of 26 Indians in April this year but also emphasised the need for zero tolerance for terrorism, calling for swift justice against the perpetrators, organisers and financiers of such acts. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD The joint statement issued at the end of the meet renewed the member countries' commitment to counterterrorism cooperation. It also highlighted how Quad would strive to remain one of the leading platforms for dealing with the challenge of terrorism in the Indo-Pacific. For other Quad countries, terrorism in the region may not be that big a nuisance but India continues to remain one of the biggest victims of terrorism emanating from Pakistani soil. It was quite a sight to behold when External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar lashed out at Pakistan for being a state sponsor of terrorism at the meet, while his counterparts from the United States, Japan and Australia stood firmly behind on the stage in rapt attention. Jaishankar minced no words when he iterated that India's Operation Sindoor has conveyed with great clarity to the world that the country will act against 'the perpetrators, the supporters, the financiers and the enablers' where it has the 'right to defend' itself against all acts of terrorism. Additionally, while inaugurating an exhibition to highlight the human cost of terrorism at the UN headquarters in New York during his US tour, Jaishankar again sent a loud message that India would not let the terrorists go unpunished, and there would be no scope for nuclear blackmail or treatment of terrorists as mere proxies. The stand that India took during the Quad foreign ministers' meet is part of a larger diplomatic strategy of the Modi government to leverage the forum to highlight its own security concerns with regards to terror emanating from Pakistan. Quad which remains one of the foremost platforms to address geopolitical challenges arising from China's aggressive rise and its manifestation in the maritime domain needs to recognise the fact that for any effective and meaningful security cooperation to tackle China, it is necessary to address its use of Pakistan and its terror complex to weaken India, a key Quad country. The terror industry that is operating from Rawalpindi HQ has the blessings and the backing from Beijing where China is leaving no stone unturned to use Pakistan to balance India in the region. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD China Feeding Off Pakistan's Terror Factories In recent years, China's tacit support to Pakistan's terror industry has become a serious issue of concern for India. If during the cold war, Pakistan had leased its territory to the West by setting up radicalisation camps to offset Soviet influence in the region, today it is willingly doing the bidding for Beijing's strategic goals. This was wide on display during Operation Sindoor when Pakistan first orchestrated the Pahalgam terror attack to challenge the narrative of normalcy in Kashmir and then used key military technology provided by the Chinese to defend itself. China's support to such rampant terror activities in Kashmir is part of its own toolkit to keep India destabilised, a key reason why it also took a strong position on repeal of Article 370 and went on to assert that its claims in Ladakh remain unchanged. What is also necessary to note is China's overt support to terrorists in the region. In the last few years, China has vetoed India's attempts to designate terrorists backed by Pakistan as 'global terrorists' at the UN. We can't forget how China has repeatedly shielded Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammad terrorists at the UNSC who have carried out serious terror attacks against India. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD In fact, India's attempts to seek sanctions against The Resistance Front, a Lashkar offshoot and the mastermind organisation behind Pahalgam attack have also hit a road-block at the UNSC due to the usual Chinese designs. Ironically, China itself has become a victim of the radicalisation in Pakistan where many Chinese nationals have also lost their lives while executing the CPEC project. Yet China continues to firmly back Pakistan's strategy of being a state-sponsor of terrorism against India. Getting Around West's Hypocrisy The fact that China is the foremost backer of Pakistan and its terror industry is not lost on anyone. After all, the nuclear blackmail card that Pakistan often plays on the world, the very moment India starts retaliating to its terror activities, is itself a gift from China to Pakistan. China not only supplied key nuclear technology and enriched Uranium to Pakistan during the cold war but it also continues to back its nuclear program till today by supplying nuclear reactors with dual-use technology. There are frequent reports of Pakistan seeking to extract a handsome price for the Gwadar port access to China which along with other ports has made China a key part of the security calculus in the Indian Ocean region. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD While China has deeply embedded itself in the maritime domain of the Indian Ocean region using Pakistan as strategic footboard, the West is still behaving like an ostrich by not recognising how the Pakistan-China axis is a threat to its own security in the long-run. This is because the anti-India terror factories that operate from the Pakistani soil are firmly backed by Beijing. The cost of dealing with this challenge for India, a key Quad partner is very high in both logistics and financial terms. The precious energy that India can spend in countering China's rise and thus ease off some pressure from other Quad partners' back is spent on dealing with a rogue state like Pakistan. It is not only unfortunate but deeply troubling that the same West. especially the United States. which sings the peans of solidarity against China at forums like Quad, does not shy away from still keeping its old ties with Pakistan alive. This was on display even during Operation Sindoor when Trump not only equated India, a victim of terrorism with its perpetrator Pakistan but also sought to use trade as a ploy to get India to tolerate terror attacks planned against it by Pakistan. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD On one hand, the United States expects support from India to counter China, its systemic rival and on the other hand it still backs Pakistan and expects India to not take the terrorism challenge seriously. The Modi government's efforts to highlight Pakistan's state sponsorship of terrorism at the Quad meet is laudable. One may say that it is a good step towards drawing attention to how Pakistan is nothing but a proxy for China itself in keeping India along with other Quad countries on tenterhooks. Now the ball is in the West's court to recognise this aspect and stop backing Pakistan in its own interest. The author is a New Delhi-based commentator on geopolitics and foreign policy. She holds a PhD from the Department of International Relations, South Asian University. She tweets @TrulyMonica. The views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect Firstpost's views. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD
Time of India
26 minutes ago
- Time of India
After Asim Munir, Pakistan air force chief visits US; meets top military, political leaders
Pakistan's chief of the air staff Zaheer Ahmad Babar Sidhu is visiting the United States, days after its army chief, field marshal Asim Munir, was by US President for lunch at the White House. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now In a statement, the (PAF) said Sidhu would further enhance bilateral defence cooperation between the two countries. 'This high-level visit is a strategic milestone in the Pakistan-US defence partnership. It will play a significant role in addressing key regional and global security issues as well as building institutional ties,' the statement read. This is the first United States visit in over a decade by a serving chief of Pakistan's air force, it highlighted. According to the PAF, Sidhu held important meetings with America's top military and political leadership, and reiterated his country's commitment to "further strengthening the existing relations" between their air forces . During the detailed discussions, they also agreed to establish high-level military relations in the future. The meetings highlighted Pakistan's "constructive role" in promoting regional stability, its commitment to its ongoing counter-terrorism efforts, and perspective on the evolving geopolitical landscape of south and central Asia, the statement noted. Sidhu also went to the Capitol Hill, where he met prominent members of the US Congress, including Mike Turner, Rich McCormick, and Bill Heizenga. Last month, top general Michael "Erik" Kurilla had the Asian nation as a "phenomenal partner" in counter-terrorism. Islamabad has also Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize for brokering the India-Pakistan ceasefire - he has repeatedly claimed to have brokered the ceasefire. India has consistently denied that Trump played any role, and that negotiations were held only between the two neighbours.
