US Secretary of State Marco Rubio continued his four-day visit to India on Saturday, where he met Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Mr Rubio also invited the Indian premier to visit the White House, as the two sides work to improve ties.
“The secretary extended an invitation, on behalf of President Trump, to the Prime Minister to visit the White House,” the US State Department said in a statement after the meeting. The two sides also “agreed to deepen trade and defence co-operation and accelerate collaboration on critical and emerging technologies.”
Starting his visit in Kolkata, Mr Rubio visited the headquarters of the humanitarian organisation and religious group founded by Mother Teresa.
Mr Rubio's talks in India are expected to focus on trade, energy and defence co-operation, the State Department said.
US presidents, including Mr Trump in his first term, have long tried to pull historically non-aligned India closer as a counterweight to Russian and rising Chinese influence in the region. Those efforts appeared to take a blow last year when Mr Trump imposed some of the highest US tariffs on India.
Many of those were rolled back in an interim agreement, but the two countries have yet to finalise a comprehensive agreement on trade.
Mr Rubio is scheduled to hold talks with External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar on Sunday, before attending the Independence Day Celebration.
Over the coming days, Mr Rubio is also due to travel to Agra and Jaipur, cities known for their monuments and palaces, before returning to Delhi to attend the Quad Foreign Ministers' Meeting.
This meeting will include senior diplomats from the US, India, Australia, and Japan. The strategic forum is focused on co-ordination across the Indo-Pacific region and has become a key platform for aligning positions on maritime security, critical supply chains, emerging technologies, and regional stability. It is widely seen as part of broader efforts to maintain a “free and open Indo-Pacific” in growing geopolitical competition with China.
Oil supply to India
India has also increased purchases of Russian oil during the conflict, after briefly pulling back last year under pressure from Washington.
Mr Rubio said on Thursday that the US was already in talks to expand its share of India's energy supply.
“We want to sell them as much energy as they'll buy,” he said. “There's a lot to work on with India. They're a great ally, a great partner. We do a lot of good work with them.”
An analysis from the Centre for Strategic and International Studies showed India's purchases of Russian oil rose from roughly 20,000 barrels a day before the imposition of sanctions to a peak of two million bpd, saving Indian refineries between $11 billion and $25 billion in 2023-2024.
India has been hit hard because of its heavy reliance on energy supplies shipped through the Strait of Hormuz. The Indian government this month rushed to introduce measures to contain the fallout, including raising fuel prices.
Mr Rubio’s first official visit to India comes as Washington seeks to stabilise relations with New Delhi following a period of strain linked to President Donald Trump’s tariff policies, which increased duties on several Indian exports.
“There is a lot to work on with India. They are a great ally and partner. We do a lot of good work with them, so this is an important trip,” Mr Rubio said ahead of his visit.
