India and the United States held bilateral 2+2 inter-sessional meeting on Friday during which the two sides exchanged views about regional developments and agreed to pursue their quest for a "free, open, inclusive, peaceful and prosperous" India-Pacific.
The two sides also reviewed the progress and developments in bilateral ties in defence, security, and foreign policy areas since the last 2+2 Ministerial meeting held on December 18 in Washington, according to a statement by Ministry of External Affairs.
The Indian delegation was led jointly V Rao, Joint Secretary (Americas) in the Ministry of External Affairs and Somnath Ghosh, Joint Secretary (International Cooperation) in the Ministry of Defence. The U.S. delegation was led jointly by Dean Thompson, Senior Bureau Official, Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs in the U.S. Department of State and David Helvey, Acting Assistant Secretary for Indo-Pacific Security Affairs in the U.S. Department of Defense.
The inter-sessional meeting mechsm was set up pursuant to the 2+2 Ministerial. The two sides agreed to continue these discussions in future, the statement said.
"Both sides reviewed the progress and developments in bilateral ties in defence, security, and foreign policy areas since the last 2+2 Ministerial meeting held on 18 December 2019 in Washington D.C," the statement read.
"They explored opportunities for enhancing ongoing cooperation in these fields based on mutual interest. They also exchanged views about regional developments, and agreed to pursue their quest for a free, open, inclusive, peaceful and prosperous Indo-Pacific," it added.
( With inputs from ANI )
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