Rubio's India visit centres on energy cooperation, while the sequence of announcements has drawn questions from the Congress.

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• MEA confirmed on October 16 that External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will hold bilateral talks with Rubio in Mumbai on October 20.
• Rubio's wider trip runs from October 17 to 22, starting in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, before he travels to Mumbai and Jamnagar in Gujarat.
• The US State Department said the visit is meant to strengthen energy cooperation between the two countries.
• MEA said the talks will review India-US relations and ways to strengthen the Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership.
• Areas of discussion include energy, trade, investment, defence and critical emerging technologies.
• In Jamnagar, Rubio is expected to visit a Reliance unit and meet business leaders on investment and energy cooperation.
• This is Rubio's second India visit since May, when he attended the Quad foreign ministers' meeting hosted by Jaishankar in New Delhi.
• US Ambassador Sergio Gor first said that Rubio would meet Indian officials in Mumbai, before MEA made any statement.
• Congress leaders Jairam Ramesh and Pawan Khera questioned why the announcement came from the US side and why Rubio is not visiting New Delhi.
• Jaishankar will also host the UAE Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister in Mumbai on October 19 and 20.
• MEA said India has hosted foreign dignitaries outside Delhi for around a decade.

Tags: IndiaUSRelations, MarcoRubio, EnergyCooperation