US National Security Advisor, Jake Sullivan will be meeting his counterpart from India National Security Advisor Ajit Doval on 5-6 January 2025. This will be the final round of talks with Sullivan before his departure from the position on January 20.
According to the White House, the officials would be discussing a wide range of topics in the meeting spanning from space, defense, strategic technology cooperation, bilateral ties, and regional and global issues. Some ongoing initiatives would also be finalized and wrapped up before the departure of the current government.
The Whitehouse Security Communications National Advisor John Kirby mentioned that from the views of the Biden administration, the US- India relationship has been an area of legacy achievements and both the parties have witnessed continued bipartisan support and momentum from administration to administration in the United States.
India has expressed concerns to China over a proposed hydropower dam on the Yarlung Zangbo River in Tibet. The river flows into India, raising worries about environmental and water supply impacts.
Chinese officials claim the project will have minimal effects downstream. The massive dam, set to be the world’s largest, was approved last month with an estimated annual capacity of 300 billion kilowatt-hours.
Following the meeting, Sullivan will deliver a speech at IIT Delhi, emphasizing India’s central position in the US priorities for the Indo-Pacific and on the global stage. The speech will also highlight the steps taken by the US and India together under the US-India initiative on Critical and Emerging Technology to strengthen their innovation alliance.
Sullivan would also be meeting the External Affairs Minister of India, Dr. S. Jaishankar, and other government officials.
According to another top official from the Biden administration, some of the issues to be taken up by Sullivan would be the advancement of cooperation around small modular reactor technology and other forms of civil nuclear cooperation, China’s overcapacity in areas of legacy chips, biopharma supply chains, ICTs risks, and cyber focussed technology protection techniques.
They would also be discussing artificial technology and national security, promotion of new commercial space cooperation, and funding for the US- India R&D partnership.
Sullivan would also be meeting the External Affairs Minister of India, Dr. S. Jaishankar, and other government officials.
