Swaraj meets Tillerson, discusses bilateral ties

NEW YORK: External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on Friday held a meeting with US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson during which they reviewed all aspects of the bilateral relationship and discussed the situation in the neighbourhood and the Indo-Asia Pacific region.

The two leaders met on the sidelines of the annual UN General Assembly session here. This was the highest-level meeting between the leaders of the two countries since June when Prime Minister Narendra Modi held talks with US President Donald Trump.

Swaraj and Tillerson discussed a wide range of bilateral issues, including the situation in the neighbourhood and the Indo-Asia Pacific region, officials said.

The meeting also comes ahead of the visit of Defence Secretary Jim Mattis to India next week.

Swaraj is scheduled to address the world body on Saturday.

"This morning, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson met with External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj in New York City," the US State Department said in a tweet along with a picture of the two leaders greeting each other.



Later External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said the two leaders reviewed all aspects of the bilateral relationship, including expanding our trade and investment relations.

"Deepening global strategic partnership, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj meets with Rex Tillerson, US Secretary of State in their first standalone meeting," Kumar tweeted.