US dy secretary of state Kurt Campbell to participate in 1st Indian Ocean Dialogue

This is the first time that the two countries are holding a structured dialogue on issues related to the Indian Ocean

US deputy secretary of state Kurt Campbell will participate this week in the first India-US Indian Ocean Dialogue in New Delhi that will focus on efforts to promote security and prosperity across the Indo-Pacific region, according to an official readout from the US State department.

Campbell will be in New Delhi during November 13-14. (Deputy Secretary Kurt Campbell | X account)

Campbell, who will be in New Delhi on November 13-14, is the first senior US official to travel to India after Donald Trump’s victory in the presidential election. This is the first time that the two countries are holding a structured dialogue on issues related to the Indian Ocean.

At the dialogue, Campbell will join US principal deputy national security advisor Jon Finer and senior Indian officials to “discuss measures to promote security and prosperity throughout the Indo-Pacific region”, the readout said.

Campbell will also participate in an intersessional meeting of the India-US initiative on Critical and Emerging Technologies (iCET) to expand cooperation between the two sides on technological innovation and production.

While providing details of the Indian Ocean Dialogue to the House Foreign Affairs Committee in September, Campbell said the two sides will “talk about what our mutual concerns are, how we can work together”.

India and the US have discussed the possibility of stepping up engagements in the Indian Ocean at other forums. A 2+2 meeting of senior Indian and US defence and foreign ministry officials last year discussed opportunities to strengthen interoperability and logistics cooperation, including through combined maritime engagements in the Indian Ocean.