US Secretary of State Marco Rubio met External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Monday on the sidelines of the 80th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York. The meeting comes amid tensions over the H-1B visa fee hike, which President Donald Trump recently raised to USD 100,000 for new applications, impacting India’s tech sector. It also follows the US imposing a 50% tariff on Indian goods over New Delhi’s purchase of Russian oil.
Rubio stated in a post on social media platform X that the meeting focused on various aspects of the bilateral partnership aimed at “enhancing prosperity for both nations.”
“Met with Indian External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar at UNGA. We discussed key areas of our bilateral relationship, including trade, energy, pharmaceuticals, and critical minerals and more to generate prosperity for India and the United States,” Rubio posted on X.
Met with Indian External Affairs Minister @DrSJaishankar at UNGA. We discussed key areas of our bilateral relationship, including trade, energy, pharmaceuticals, and critical minerals and more to generate prosperity for India and the United States. pic.twitter.com/5dZJAd85Za
---Advertisement---— Secretary Marco Rubio (@SecRubio) September 22, 2025
According to a State Department official release, Rubio said that India is critical to the US.
“Secretary Rubio, reiterating that India is a relationship of critical importance to the United States, expressed his appreciation for the Indian government’s continued engagement on a number of issues, including trade, defence, energy, pharmaceuticals, critical minerals, and other items related to the bilateral relationship,” the US Department of State said in a statement.
The statement added, “Secretary Rubio and External Affairs Minister Jaishankar agreed that the United States and India will continue working together to promote a free and open Indo-Pacific region, including through the Quad.”
In a post on X, EAM Jaishankar said, “Good to meet Secretary of State Marco Rubio this morning in New York. Our conversation covered a range of bilateral and international issues of current concern. Agreed on the importance of sustained engagement to progress on priority areas. We will remain in touch.”
Good to meet @SecRubio this morning in New York.
— Dr. S. Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar) September 22, 2025
Our conversation covered a range of bilateral and international issues of current concern. Agreed on the importance of sustained engagement to progress on priority areas.
We will remain in touch.
🇮🇳 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/q31vCxaWel
The meeting marked their first direct interaction since trade tensions escalated following steep tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump on Indian goods over India’s purchase of Russian oil.
Despite recent challenges, the meeting is seen as part of a broader effort to reinforce India-US ties, which had shown signs of strain but are now moving towards recovery.
The two leaders had last met in Washington during the 10th Quad Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in July and had also interacted earlier in January this year. However, the upcoming bilateral meeting will be their first face-to-face interaction since trade frictions flared up after President Donald Trump imposed steep tariffs on Indian goods over the purchase of Russian oil.
The 80th session of the UNGA formally opened on September 9, 2025, with the High-Level General Debate commencing on September 23.
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(With inputs from ANI)
