Marco Rubio hails India-US ties as one of top relationships in world

Amid ongoing trade tensions between India and the United States over US President Donald Trump’s punitive tariffs, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has described New Delhi as one of Washington’s "top relationships" in the world today.

Rubio made these remarks during the Senate confirmation hearing of Sergio Gor, the US ambassador-designate to India.

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Rubio hails India-US relationship

India is one of the top relationships the US has in the world today, and Washington is in a period of “extraordinary transition” in that relationship with Delhi, Rubio said on Thursday (September 11).

Introducing Gor at his confirmation hearing in the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Rubio underlined India’s growing strategic importance in the Indo-Pacific region and in global geopolitics.

"Sergio Gor is nominated as US Ambassador to India, which is, I would say, one of the top relationships that the US has in the world today, in terms of the future of what the world's going to look like," Rubio said

"In the 21st century, the story will be written in the Indo-Pacific. In fact, it’s so important that we’ve actually changed the name of the combatant command of the region. India is at the core of that," Rubio stressed.

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'Period of extraordinary transition'

He further noted that Washington and New Delhi were in "a period of extraordinary transition" with several pressing issues on the table, ranging from the Ukraine war to other regional developments.

"We've got some really important issues coming up that we need to work with them on and work through that implicates what's happening from Ukraine, but also implicates what's happening in the region," Rubio added as trade talks between New Delhi and Washington resumed.

Talking about Gor, Rubio emphasised the importance of having a US envoy in India with the President’s confidence. He described Gor as "very, very close to the President" and someone capable of "getting things done both in the administration and through the Oval Office."

"I don’t know anyone better positioned to do that than Gor," Rubio remarked.

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Youngest US envoy

Last month, Trump nominated Gor, Director of Presidential Personnel, as Ambassador to India and Special Envoy for South and Central Asia. At 38, Gor would become the youngest American envoy to New Delhi.

During his confirmation hearing, Gor echoed the significance of the bilateral relationship, saying the US-India partnership would "define the 21st century." He outlined his priorities in New Delhi, strengthening cooperation in defence, technology, AI, semiconductors, pharmaceuticals, and critical minerals.

Gor also pointed to the US’s ambitions to become a leading energy supplier to India through crude oil and natural gas exports.