Jaishankar begins 3-day US visit today: What to expect from Quad talks and why it matters

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will travel to the United States from June 30 to July 2 to attend the Quad Foreign Ministers' Meeting (QFMM) on July 1 in Washington, DC. The visit comes at the invitation of US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said in a statement.

During the visit, Jaishankar will also inaugurate an exhibition titled The Human Cost of Terrorism at the United Nations Headquarters in New York on June 30. The exhibition will spotlight the global impact of terrorism and efforts made by the international community to combat it.

The MEA said that the July 1 Quad meeting will build on discussions held at the previous QFMM in Washington earlier this year in January. The ministers from Australia, India, Japan, and the US are expected to exchange views on key regional and global issues, particularly relating to the Indo-Pacific. They will also review progress on Quad initiatives and consider new proposals ahead of the upcoming Quad Leaders’ Summit, to be hosted by India.

US State Department Principal Deputy Spokesperson Tommy Pigott confirmed Rubio will host the July 1 meeting. He noted that the Secretary’s first diplomatic engagement was with the Quad and said the upcoming summit reinforces US leadership in advancing a “free, open, and secure Indo-Pacific.”

The Quad, which includes Australia, India, Japan, and the United States, is focused on fostering an open and resilient Indo-Pacific. The partnership traces its origins to joint efforts following the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami.

In January, on his first day in office, Rubio hosted the foreign ministers of the Quad nations for a high-level meeting where they jointly reaffirmed support for sovereignty and territorial integrity in the region, while rejecting any attempts to alter the status quo through force or coercion.

This visit occurs as India and the US are nearing completion of the highly anticipated bilateral trade agreement before the July 8 deadline, just before Trump's reciprocal tariffs take effect.

Following his remark about tariff deadlines being flexible on Friday, Trump told Fox News that his administration is unlikely to extend those deadlines.

The U.S. has suspended the 26 percent tariffs on certain Indian imports until July 9, a decision announced by Trump on April 2 to help narrow the trade gap. However, the baseline tariff of 10 percent remains in effect. India has been requesting full exemption from the additional 26 percent tariff.

Earlier, US President Donald Trump once again made claims that he stopped the conflict between India and Pakistan by threatening to halt “cancel all deals” with both countries.

“We did some great work, India and Pakistan, that was going to be maybe nuclear, we did that, we did a lot of work. I don’t know if there’s ever been a president that’s done much more," the US President said.