Maryland [US], November 9 (ANI): US Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin has departed for India from the Joint Base Andrews to participate in the fifth India-US 22 Ministerial dialogue to be held here in the national capital on Friday.

Following his visit to India, Austin will be travelling to Korea and Indonesia, which will mark his 9th visit to the Indo-Pacific region.

Sharing this on social media platform ‘X’, the US Secretary of Defence stressed that his visit comes as the US along with its partners and allies continue to make historic progress toward a shared vision of a free and open Indo-Pacific.

“Wheels up at @Andrews_JBA en route to India, the Republic of Korea and Indonesia. My 9th visit to the Indo-Pacific comes as the U.S., along with our allies and partners, continue to make historic progress toward a shared vision of a free and open Indo-Pacific,” he said in his post.

As the fifth India-US 22 Ministerial dialogue approaches, the defence and the foreign ministers of both countries will take the opportunity to progress the futuristic roadmap for the India-US partnership as envisioned by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Joe Biden.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Minister of External Affairs S. Jaishankar will welcome US Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken and Secretary of Defence Lloyd J. Austin III for the Fifth India-U.S. 22 Ministerial Dialogue in New Delhi.

The ministers of both nations will not only take the opportunity to progress the futuristic roadmap for the India-US partnership but will also take stock of contemporary regional issues.

According to the MEA release, the leaders will also exchange views about shared priorities for augmenting cooperation in multilateral platforms, and through frameworks such as QUAD (Quadrilateral Security Dialogue).

Notably, Rajnath Singh and Jaishankar are also slated to have bilateral meetings with their respective US counterparts, which will mark a continuity of Ministerial Dialogue and reaffirm the India-US Comprehensive Global Strategic partnership.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has been crisscrossing the Middle East in an effort to resolve the crisis even as the Israel-Hamas conflict enters its second month. The crisis in the Middle East is likely to feature in the 22 dialogue. (ANI)