By PTI
WASHINGTON: US Secretary of State Tony Blinken on Wednesday spoke with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar to review regional priorities, worsening humanitarian situation in Ukraine and to promote free and open Indo-Pacific, his spokesperson said.
The two leaders spoke “to review regional priorities, including the worsening humanitarian situation in Ukraine and our shared efforts to promote a free, open, secure, and prosperous Indo-Pacific, in which the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all states is respected,” State Department Spokesperson Ned Price said.
Blinken has wrapped up a three-nation tour of the Middle East and North Africa on Wednesday, making an impassioned appeal to Algeria to limit ties with Russia.
“The countries of North Africa and the Middle East have experienced themselves the consequences of Russia’s military campaigns before,” Blinken said.
The talks came a day ahead of Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s visit to India.
“Just completed a useful conversation with @SecBlinken. Reviewed the progress on our bilateral cooperation. Discussed developments pertaining to the Indo-Pacific, Ukraine and the global economy,” Jaishankar tweeted.
India and the US have been in touch over the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
US Deputy National Security Adviser Daleep Singh arrived in India on Wednesday on a two-day visit.
Hours after his arrival, Singh held talks with Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal.
Singh is known to be a key architect in designing the US sanctions against Russia over its invasion of Ukraine.
US President Joe Biden recently made a veiled dig at India over its position on the crisis in Ukraine.
Biden said the world had launched a united front across Europe and the Pacific on the Russian attack on Ukraine with the “possible exception of India”.
He said India had been “somewhat shaky” over the Russian invasion at the Quad as well.
Meanwhile, the White House has pledged an additional $500 million in direct aid for Ukraine as the Russian invasion grinds on.
U.S. President Joe Biden told Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during a 55 minute call Wednesday that the additional aid was on its way.
The leaders also reviewed security aid already delivered to Ukraine and the effects that weaponry has had on the war, according to the White House.
Zelesnkyy has pressed the Biden administration and other Western allies to provide Ukraine with military jets.
The U.S. and other NATO countries have thus far been unwilling to accommodate that request out of concern it could lead to Russia broadening the war beyond Ukraine’s borders.
Prior to Wednesday’s announcement of $500 million in aid, the Biden administration had sent Ukraine about $2 billion in humanitarian and security assistance since the start of the war last month.
That’s all part of the $13.6 billion that Congress approved earlier this month for Ukraine as part of a broader spending bill.
