India's NSG entry and LeT hog the limelight at 2+2 dialouge

NEW DELHI: India’s early entry into the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) and additional actions to counter Pakistan-based LeT, a terrorist organisation, were discussed prominently at the Indo-US 2 + 2 dialogue.
“The recent decision by the United States to put India in the list of countries eligible for Strategic Trade Authorization Tier-I License Exemption reflects New Delhi’s robust and responsible export control policies. In our meeting today, we also agreed to work together to secure India’s membership of the Nuclear Suppliers Group at the earliest,” foreign minister Sushma Swaraj said in a statement.

“The US welcomed India’s accession to the Australia Group, the Wassenaar Arrangement, and the Missile Technology Control Regime and reiterated its full support for India’s immediate accession to the NSG,” read the statement. This comes after recent discussions between India and Russia on New Delhi’s NSG membership during foreign secretary Vijay Gokhale’s Moscow trip.

The ministers also held substantial discussions on expanding counter-terror agenda, particularly against Pakistan-based LeT. Washington has been acting against LeT over the last few months and it has decided to continue the momentum. The two have agreed to deepen cooperation in international forums like the UN and the Financial Action Task Force. “Our counter-terrorism cooperation has acquired a new qualitative edge and purpose... We welcomed the recent designations of LeT terrorists by the US. They underscore the international community’s scrutiny over the threat of terrorism emanating from Pakistan,” Swaraj said.

They also named Dawood Ibrahim’s ‘D Company’ as organisations against which bilateral cooperation and action will be strengthened.

On S-400 waiver, Pompeo told the US media: “There’s been no decision made. But I will share that we do understand the history, right, of India’s relationship with Russia and legacy systems... We’ll work our way through the waiver decision as the days and weeks proceed...”