Postponing of ‘2+2 dialogue’ not related to bilateral relationship: US

The United States has said that postponement of the '2+2 dialogue' is 'entirely unrelated to bilateral relationship' between the two countries.

News agency ANI quoted a US government as saying that US Secretary of State Michael R Pompeo and External Affairs Sushma Swaraj have agreed to reschedule the 2+2 dialogue as soon as possible.

"Secretary of State Michael R Pompeo spoke last night with External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj to convey his regret for having to postpone the 2+2 dialogue, which had been scheduled for July 6. This change was prompted by reasons entirely unrelated to bilateral relationship:US statement..The US-India partnership is a major strategic priority for the Trump Administration. The United States remains firmly committed to a strong relationship with India," said US statement, as per ANI report.

Earlier, the US conveyed to India that it has postponed the '2+2 dialogue', scheduled to be held next week in Washington, due to "unavoidable reasons".

Swaraj and Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman were to travel to the US to take part in the meeting with US Secretary of State Michael R Pompeo and Secretary of Defence James Mattis on July 6.

After June last year, the two countries have tried to schedule the dialogue many times with several dates having been considered. Earlier this year also, the '2+2 dialogue' had been postponed due to uncertainty over the confirmation of Pompeo as President Donald Trump's new Secretary of State. Pompeo was later confirmed as Secretary of State in April. The dialogue is seen as a vehicle to elevate the strategic relationship between the two countries. The meeting was expected to focus on strengthening strategic, security, and defence cooperation.