India, US to cement bilateral ties with Quad after Jaishankar visit

Before the Quad physical summit this fall, US, Indian, Japanese and Australian diplomats will work out an elaborate agenda to define the Quad grouping.
 
India and the US have decided to cement bilateral ties with the Quad security grouping and the Indo-Pacific taking priority, and, critically, with Washington expressing support for New Delhi’s stand on health security, Afghanistan and transgressions on its borders.

According to diplomats in Washington and New Delhi, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar’s first official physical interaction with his counterpart and the US national security team has resulted in assurances from the Joe Biden administration on India’s concerns over Afghanistan and the Indo-Pacific.

The two sides discussed the security situation in Afghanistan in detail in the backdrop of the US withdrawing its forces from the strife-torn Islamic Republic.

In the context of violence being perpetrated by Taliban, the US apparently assured Jaishankar that while its military will withdraw from Afghanistan in October, the Biden administration will be keeping a close watch on the Af-Pak region so that security situation in the region does not deteriorate.