Washington-Secretary of State Antony Blinken will visit India and Kuwait next week to discuss China, the coronavirus and Afghanistan, the State Department said Friday.
The trip is from Afghanistan before the US military withdrawal is complete, as the Biden administration seeks to strengthen US leadership by vaccination of COVID-19 worldwide, slowing the growing invasion of China. Work to evacuate vulnerable people.
The State Department said Blinken would meet with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi on Wednesday and travel to Kuwait City the next day.
India is an important part of the United States’ efforts to counter the growing influence of the Chinese administration in the Indo-Pacific and other regions. State Department spokesman Ned Price said on the agenda in Delhi: “COVID-19 response efforts, Indo-Pacific involvement, sharing of regional security interests, sharing of democratic values, dealing with the climate crisis. “Is included.
According to Dean Thompson, a US diplomat in South and Central Asia, Blinken is seeking India’s assistance in stabilizing Afghanistan after the withdrawal of US troops was completed at the end of August.
“We hope that all countries in the region will have a common interest in stable and safe Afghanistan in the future, so we will work with our Indian partners on how we can work together to achieve that goal. We will definitely consider discussing it, “he said. Reporter.
Blinken is also considering setting up a meeting of leaders of groups including Australia, India, Japan and the United States, the so-called quad leaders. President Joe Biden hosted a virtual quad summit earlier this year focusing on the coronavirus pandemic and the threat posed by China, but hopes to arrange a face-to-face meeting by the end of the year.
Meanwhile, Kuwait, along with Qatar, is one of several countries that work in the United States and is noted as a possible host of thousands of Afghans who want to emigrate to the United States before the U.S. military withdraws completely. It is one.
The Byden administration wants to evacuate approximately 4,000 Afghan people who have served as interpreters and other supporters for Afghan U.S. forces and their families to third-country U.S. military bases during visa processing. ..
It is on top of about 2,500 Afghans who have already completed security inspections and will be held at Fort Lee Army Base in Virginia from next week until the final visa approval.
Matthew Lee