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India-US Relations: External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar met US Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Malaysia and discussed bilateral ties between the two nations. This meeting comes on the sidelines of the ASEAN summit.
In a post on the social media platform X, the EAM informed about their meeting and stated that he appreciates the discussion on bilateral ties as well as regional and global issues.
“Glad to meet @SecRubio this morning in Kuala Lumpur. Appreciated the discussion on our bilateral ties as well as regional and global issues,” Jaishankar wrote on X.
Glad to meet @SecRubio this morning in Kuala Lumpur.
Appreciated the discussion on our bilateral ties as well as regional and global issues.
pic.twitter.com/mlrqoyZypB
— Dr. S. Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar) October 27, 2025
Rubio On India-US Relations
Earlier, Rubio dismissed growing concerns that Washington’s growing strategic ties with Pakistan are meant to sideline India. He noted that the relationship with Islamabad would not undermine the US’ “deep, historic, and important” partnership with New Delhi.
The US State Secretary, while addressing the press en route to Doha, Qatar, on Saturday, asserted that New Delhi understands the necessity of engaging multiple nations in a mature diplomatic framework.
“I don’t think anything we’re doing with Pakistan comes at the expense of our relationship or friendship with India, which is deep, historic, and important,” Rubio told reporters when asked about India’s apprehensions over the recent surge in the US-Pakistan relationship.
Also Read: ‘Not At India’s Expense’: Rubio Defends US-Pakistan Ties With ‘History’ Argument
Acknowledging India’s concerns, the top US diplomat said, “We know they’re concerned for obvious reasons because of the tensions that have existed between Pakistan and India historically.”
However, he emphasised the broader imperative of global engagement, noting that Washington sees an opportunity to expand its “strategic relationship” with Pakistan and that it aims to work with countries on matters of common interest.
“We have to have relations with a lot of different countries. We see an opportunity to expand our strategic relationship with Pakistan, and that’s our job – to try to figure out how many countries we can find and how we can work with them on things of common interest,” Rubio said.
He further praised India’s diplomatic maturity, noting that “the Indians are very mature when it comes to diplomacy and things of that nature. They have some relationships with countries that we don’t have relationships with. It’s part of a mature, pragmatic foreign policy.”
As per ANI, Rubio’s remark comes during a time when the Trump administration has been increasingly renewing its engagement with Pakistan.
India At 22nd ASEAN Summit
India and ASEAN nations strengthened their bond at the 22nd ASEAN-India Summit on Sunday in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Prime Minister Narendra Modi highlighted key areas for collaboration, counter-terrorism, early review of the ASEAN-India FTA, and maritime security, among others.
Prime Minister Modi participated virtually in the Summit. This was the Prime Minister’s 12th participation in the India-ASEAN Summit.
PM Modi and ASEAN leaders jointly reviewed progress in ASEAN-India relations and discussed initiatives to strengthen the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.
According to a Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) press release, PM Modi stated that terrorism poses a serious challenge to global peace and security and stressed the importance of unity in the fight against it.
(with ANI inputs)