Senior US diplomat Nuland to visit India for foreign office consultation

A senior American diplomat will travel to India for foreign office consultations with her Indian counterpart, an official statement said on Saturday.

The India visit of Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Victoria Nuland follows Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia Donald Lu's trip to New Delhi early this month.

Nuland's India tour is part of a four-nation visit, including Nepal, Sri Lanka, and Qatar from January 28 to February 3. In Kathmandu, she will engage with the new government on the broad agenda of the US partnership with Nepal, the State Department said in the statement.

While in India, the Under Secretary will lead the US-India annual Foreign Office Consultations which cover the full range of bilateral, regional, and global issues. She will also meet with young tech leaders, it said.

In Sri Lanka, Nuland will mark the 75th anniversary of US-Sri Lanka relations and offer continued US support for Sri Lanka's efforts to stabilise the economy, protect human rights, and promote reconciliation, it said.

And finally, in Qatar, the Under Secretary will discuss global issues under the framework of the US-Qatar Strategic Dialogue.

She will also engage counterparts on Qatar's critical support for the relocation of Afghans with ties to the United States and our bilateral arrangement on the protection of US interests in Afghanistan, it said.