Two-plus-two Indo-US dialogue to be held on Dec 18 in Washington: MEA

The second two-plus-two dialogue between India and the US will take place on December 18 in Washington during which the two sides will take stock of the entire gamut of strategic ties between the two countries, the Ministry of External Affairs said on Thursday. The Indian side will be represented by External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, MEA spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said.

"We reached out to members of the US Congress and other stakeholders on the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill. Hope they will understand our position," Kumar said. On whether the India-Japan summit will take place in Guwahati from December 15-17 given the protests against the citizenship bill, he said there was no update to share.

Asked to comment on the cancellation of Bangladesh Foreign Minister A K Abdul Momen's visit and if it was a fallout of criticism of that country's treatment of minorities, he said, "We never said there was religious persecution in Bangladesh during the current government's tenure." Referring to Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan's critical comments on the citizenship bill, the spokesperson said Pakistan should focus on its treatment of minorities rather than comment on India's internal matter.