'No weaponisation of resources': India's 5-point stand at Jaishankar-Rubio talks

New Delhi, May 24: External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar, on Sunday, outlined India's five-point approach on key regional and global issues following high-level delegation talks with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio at Hyderabad House, signalling strong momentum in the India-US strategic partnership.Addressing a joint press briefing after the meeting, Jaishankar said the bilateral relationship is grounded in a convergence of national interests across several areas of mutual importance. "In terms of the political understanding between India and the US, we have a strategic partnership which emanates from a convergence of national interests in many areas," he said. Laying out New Delhi's broad stance on pressing regional and global matters, Jaishankar articulated five clear principles.

"One, that we advocate dialogue and diplomacy to address conflicts. Two, we support safe and unimpeded maritime commerce. Three, we demand scrupulous respect for international law. Four, we are against the weaponisation of market shares and resources.

And five, we believe in the value of trusted partnerships and resilient supply chains to de-risk the global economy," he said. On the economic front, both sides discussed the early finalisation of an India-US interim trade agreement, which Jaishankar described as an important step towards a broader bilateral trade pact envisaged during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Washington in February 2025. "We spoke about the value of concluding, at an early date, the final text of the interim agreement regarding reciprocal and mutually beneficial trade," he said. Rubio echoed the optimism, expressing hope that the long-pending trade deal would be sealed soon and affirming that both countries are "strategically aligned" on almost all key global issues.

On defence cooperation, Jaishankar referred to the recently renewed 10-year major defence partnership framework agreement between the two countries and highlighted the signing of a comprehensive underwater domain awareness roadmap. He stressed the importance of integrating the “Make in India” approach and lessons drawn from recent conflicts into the defence partnership going forward. Both sides also deliberated on cooperation in emerging technologies, critical minerals and artificial intelligence. On energy, Jaishankar said civil nuclear cooperation was also on the agenda.

"Secretary Rubio and I welcomed recent cooperation between India and the US in the energy sector," he said. The two ministers discussed developments in West Asia, the Indian subcontinent and East Asia, as well as deliberations related to Jaishankar's recent visit to the Caribbean region. Rubio, who is on an official visit to New Delhi, struck a confident note on the overall trajectory of the relationship. "India-US relations have not lost momentum… India-US relations will come out much stronger in the coming years," he said.

With inputs from agencies