Top US diplomat Donald Lu to travel to India to attend bilateral forum

United States Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs Donald Lu will travel to India and Bangladesh from January 12-15. During his visit to India, he will participate in the India-US Forum, the US Department of State announced in a statement.

Notably, the sixth edition of the India-US Forum is scheduled to be held in New Delhi on January 13-14. While in India, Donald Lu will hold meetings with senior Indian officials to discuss how the United States and India can further enhance ties in energy, trade, security, and human rights cooperation.

During his visit to both nations, Donald Lu will hold meetings on various issues, including energy, trade, security cooperation, religious freedom, labour, and human rights.

"Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs Donald Lu will travel to India and Bangladesh January 12-15, for meetings on a range of priorities including energy, trade, security cooperation, religious freedom, labour, and human rights," the US Department of State said in a statement.

During his visit to Bangladesh, the US Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs will meet with senior Bangladeshi officials and civil society leaders to discuss strengthening ties between both nations.

Lu will also discuss enhancing economic engagement and hear their perspectives on labour and human rights with Bangladeshi lawmakers, according to the statement released by the US Department of State.

Earlier in November, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar met US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on the sidelines of the ASEAN-India summit in Cambodia.

Jaishankar and Blinken discussed the conflict in Ukraine, the Indo-Pacific region and bilateral ties between India and US.

Jaishankar tweeted, "A good meeting with US Secretary of State @SecBlinken. Discussed Ukraine, Indo-Pacific, energy, G20 and bilateral relations.