A 12-member delegation accompanying US President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump to India will include US Ambassador to India Kenneth Juster, Secretary Wilbur Ross, of Commerce Department, Secretary Dan Brouillette, of the Energy Department, Mick Mulvaney, Assistant to the President and Acting Chief of Staff and Acting Chief of Staff National Security Advisor Robert O’Brien, the White House said Friday.
Trump’s daughter Ivanka and son-in-law Jared Kushner are members of the delegation. While Ivanka is Assistant to the President and Advisor to the President, Kushner, is Assistant to the President and Senior Advisor to the President.
Other members include Stephen Miller, Assistant to the President and Senior Advisor for Policy, Dan Scavino, Assistant to the President and Senior Advisor for Digital Strategy, Lindsay Reynolds, Assistant to the President and Chief of Staff to the First Lady, Robert Blair, Assistant to the President and Special Representative for International Telecommunication Policy and Senior Advisor to the Chief of Staff and Stephanie Grisham, Assistant to US President and Press Secretary and Director of Communications for the President and First Lady.
During the two-day visit beginning on February 24, Trump is expected to raise concerns over rising trade barriers and tariffs during his talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
“The visit will focus on several key areas. First, we’ll focus on building our economic and energy ties. Just to note that two-way trade in goods and services exceeded $142 billion in 2018, and there’s certainly much more room to grow, particularly in energy,” a senior US official said.
“India is the fifth-largest economy in the world, has huge energy needs. And the U.S. is ready to help India meet those needs. Indeed, in 2016, U.S. energy exports to India have grown 500 percent to nearly $7 billion.”
India stopped crude oil imports from Iran in May last year to comply with the US sanctions on Tehran over its nuclear programme. Iran used to supply 10 per cent of India’s oil needs.
Boosting counter-terror cooperation, deepening engagement in the Indo-Pacific region and augmenting defence are also high on the agenda in Trump’s talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
“We will focus on defense and security cooperation to both fight terrorism and promote a free and open Indo-Pacific. The U.S. wants an India that is strong, with a capable military that supports peace, stability, and a rules-based order in the Indo-Pacific region,” the official said.
Describing India as a pillar of Washington’s Indo-Pacific strategy, the official said, “We continue to work together to promote this vision of a free and open international system based on market economics, good governance, freedom of the seas and skies, and respect for sovereignty.”
