External Affairs Minister on Wednesday said that it was clear that the United States’ new Donald Trump administration was keen on prioritising the bilateral relationship with India.

The statement by Jaishankar came after he held a series of meetings in Washington with officials of the US government including Secretary of State Marco Rubio. This came a day after Trump was sworn-in as the US president for a second term.

“If I were to share my overall impressions, I would say one, it was very keen,” Jaishankar told reporters. “It was very clear that the Trump administration was keen to have India present at the inaugural itself. They are clearly prioritising the bilateral relationship.”

The external affairs minister added that it was evident that the new administration would like to build on the foundation of the relationship that was established during Trump’s first term as president between 2017 and 2021.

“President Trump and Prime Minister [Narendra] Modi at that time took a number of initiatives, and we have seen that mature in many ways,” the minister added.