Marco Rubio's Big Praise For "Busy Man" S Jaishankar At QUAD
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio was all praises for Foreign Minister Dr S Jaishankar as he hosted counterparts from India, Japan and Australia for the Quad Foreign Ministers' Meeting on Tuesday.
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Jaishankar said there were hopes of bringing the trade talks to a successful conclusion
Washington:
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio showered praise on Foreign Minister Dr S Jaishankar during the Quad Foreign Ministers' Meeting on Tuesday, hosting counterparts from India, Japan, and Australia. Rubio remarked on the Indian diplomat's extensive global travels, highlighting his active diplomatic presence worldwide.
"I've encountered him several times in just six months since taking office. I was just mentioning to him, he travels so extensively. Whenever I check the news, Dr Jaishankar appears in a different region of the world. He's an incredibly busy individual," the American diplomat stated in his introductory comments before the four-nation gathering.
🚨: "Every time I turn on the news, Dr. Jaishankar is in a different part of the world — he's a very busy man"- Us Sec Of State Marco Rubio pic.twitter.com/3afRWWtQ8G
— The Frustrated Indian (@FrustIndian) July 1, 2025
Rubio also described the Quad nations as crucial strategic allies and emphasized the need to "deliver action" on specific matters.
Quad, or the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, represents a strategic forum between Australia, India, Japan, and the United States, dedicated to advocating for a free and open Indo-Pacific region, ensuring maritime security, and encouraging economic collaboration.
Following Tuesday's discussions, Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar posted on X that the meeting had been "very productive". Jaishankar also conducted a bilateral meeting with Rubio.
In a collective statement after their Washington talks, the foreign ministers announced the launch of the Quad Critical Minerals Initiative, which they described as an "ambitious expansion of our partnership to strengthen economic security and collective resilience by collaborating to secure and diversify critical minerals supply chains."
India-US Trade Deal
Jaishankar indicated on Monday that there were expectations of successfully concluding trade negotiations, noting this would require "give and take" to reach compromise.
US President Donald Trump stated on Tuesday that Washington could achieve a trade agreement with India beneficial for American companies competing there while reducing tariffs for New Delhi, though he expressed uncertainty about securing a deal with Japan before a July 9 deadline for increased levies.
Quad On Pahalgam Attack
India diverged from Trump's assertions that his intervention and threats to suspend trade discussions prevented a major conflict between India and Pakistan after terrorists killed 26 tourists in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam in April.
On Monday, Jaishankar reaffirmed India's stance that trade was not a factor in establishing a ceasefire with Pakistan, while noting regarding the US that "relationships will never be free of issues," and "what matters is the ability to deal with it and to keep that trend going in the positive direction."
The joint Quad statement condemned the April 22 Pahalgam attack, which India attributed to Pakistan. This attack triggered significant escalation in India-Pakistan tensions, resulting in intense fighting between the nuclear-armed neighbors until a ceasefire was announced on May 10.
India-US Defence Ties
Following the Quad meeting, Jaishankar visited the Pentagon, where Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth expressed hope for building upon India-US defence integration efforts.
"We hope we can complete several major pending US defence sales to India, expand our shared defence industrial cooperation and co-production efforts," Hegseth said.