Overview

• Senior officials held a virtual 2+2 intersessional dialogue on August 25 co-chaired by Bethany P. Morrison and Jedidiah P. Royal from the U.S. and Nagaraj Naidu Kakanur and Vishwesh Negi from India.
• The agenda covered trade and investment, energy security with an emphasis on civil-nuclear cooperation, critical minerals, and joint work on counternarcotics and counterterrorism.
• Both sides said they look forward to a new ten-year Framework for the Major Defence Partnership, with plans to deepen defence industrial, science and technology, operational and information-sharing cooperation.
• Participants agreed to build on the U.S.–India COMPACT and reaffirmed cooperation through the Quad to support a free and secure Indo-Pacific.
• The dialogue occurred as U.S. tariff measures on Indian exports escalate, with news reports citing total duties of about 50 percent taking effect this week, even as both governments pledged to keep engagement on track.