U.S. secretary of state meets with Indian PM on bilateral ties

U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson (L) meets with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi, India on Oct. 25, 2017. Tillerson arrived in the Indian capital late Tuesday night for his maiden official visit to this country. (Xinhua/PIB)

NEW DELHI, Oct. 25 (Xinhua) -- Visiting U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson on Wednesday met with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on bilateral relations, officials said.

"The prime minister shared the resolve expressed by Secretary Tillerson on taking further steps in the direction of accelerating and strengthening the content, pace and scope of the bilateral engagement," an official spokesman said.

Tillerson arrived in New Delhi on Tuesday night on a three-day visit to India. Prior to visiting India, Tillerson paid a visit to Afghanistan and Pakistan.

"Secretary Tillerson exchanged views on his recent travels in the region with the prime minister," the spokesman said.

Earlier in the day, Tillerson held detailed discussions with Indian Foreign minister Sushma Swaraj and National Security Adviser Ajit Doval.

The United States has shown keen interest to involve India with a much greater role in Afghanistan.

India recently declined the U.S. request to send troops to Afghanistan but reiterated its commitment to training Afghan security personnel and helping in reconstruction of the war-torn country.