Shringla makes farewell call on Pompeo, discusses 'further strengthening' of India-US ties

India's outgoing Ambassador to the US Harsh Vardhan Shringla called on Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and discussed "further strengthening" of the ties between the two countries.

Shringla met Pompeo during a farewell call on Friday before leaving for New Delhi to take up his next assignment as India's next foreign secretary, succeeding Vijay Gokhale who will retire later this month.

“They discussed further strengthening of the partnership between India and the US building on the excellent progress made in 2019,” the Indian Embassy said in a tweet on Friday.

Given the importance Pompeo attaches to the India-US relationship, he met Shringla despite a hectic schedule on a day of Iranian crisis following the killing of Iran's top commander Qasem Soleimani in a US drone strike.

The move is considered unusual for a US secretary of state to meet an outgoing envoy from any country.

Shringla served as the top Indian diplomat in Washington for one year. He played an important role in successful hosting of the "Howdy, Modi" event in Houston in September where US President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Narendra Modi jointly addressed the Indian diaspora.