External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on August 4 discussed the situation in Sri Lanka, developments in Myanmar, and other pressing global challenges at a meeting in Phnom Penh.
It is understood that the rising tensions between China and Taiwan following U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's high-profile visit to Taipei also figured in the talks that took place on the margins of an ASEAN conclave in the Cambodian capital.
"A warm conversation to start meetings on sidelines of ASEAN Ministerial in Phnom Penh. Discussed the ever strengthening India-US relationship and the global situation with U.S. Secretary of State @SecBlinken," Mr. Jaishankar tweeted.
In his opening remarks at the meeting, Mr. Blinken said the U.S. and India are strong proponents of the ASEAN centrality in the Indo-Pacific, according to the US State Department.
"We're both strong proponents of ASEAN centrality. We have a shared vision together for a free and open Indo-Pacific that we work on in so many different ways every single day," he said.
"And of course, we have some immediate challenges that we're both concerned with, to include the situation in Sri Lanka, Burma, and a number of other hot spots," he said.
"So I very much look forward to once again being able to go through a number of these issues with my friend, and then we'll both head over to our meetings," Mr. Blinken added.
