We appreciate Tillerson’s positive evaluation of IndoUS ties: MEA

NEW DELHI: India said on Friday that it appreciates US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson’s positive evaluation of the Indo-US ties, asserting that New Delhi shares his optimism and looks forward to welcoming him here next week for discussions to strengthen the partnership.

Tillerson has made a significant policy statement on India-US relations and its future, an external affairs ministry statement said. “He brought out its various strengths and highlighted our shared commitment to a rule-based international order. We look forward to welcoming him in India next week for detailed discussions on further strengthening of our partnership,” the statement said.

Making a statement on “defining our relationship with India for the next century”, Tillerson last week had said the US is India’s “reliable partner” in this period of uncertainty and angst.

In a major India-policy speech, the first by the Trump administration, Tillerson had referred to the rise of China, saying its behaviour and action was “posing a challenge to the rulesbased international order”.

“China, while rising alongside India, has done so less responsibly, at times undermining the international, rules- based order — even as countries like India operate within a framework that protects other nations’ sovereignty,” he had told a Washington audience ahead of his maiden visit to India as the top American diplomat.