One of the issues secretary of state Marco Rubio raised with EAM S Jaishankar was irregular migration, underlining the Trump administration’s position on the issue. Jaishankar said India’s position on legal mobility and illegal migration has been consistent with all countries and “US is no exception”.
“We have always taken the view that if there are any of our citizens who are not here legally and if you are sure that they are our citizens, we’ve always been open to their legitimate return. So, it’s not a position unique to the US. We have been consistent, we have been very principled about it and that remains our position, and I conveyed that very clearly to secretary Rubio,” Jaishankar said at a press meet. He warned against quoting numbers, saying India first has to validate that the individuals concerned are of Indian origin.
During the meeting with Rubio, Jaishankar raised the issue of delay in visas for Indian nationals. He said the delay constrained people-to-people contacts that act as the very basis of the relationship. Jaishankar also said he discussed the Bangladesh situation with Rubio, but provided no details.