Antony holds first round of talks with Gates

WASHINGTON: As the Indo-US nuclear accord comes up for ratification by the US Congress, New Delhi and Washington today opened their first high level contacts with the two Defence Ministers expressing "great satisfaction" at the pace of mutual defence and security cooperation.

Defence Minister AK Antony, the first high level Indian politician to visit Washington after the Vienna wavier by the Nuclear Suppliers Group had his first round of talks with his American counterpart Robert Gates here. Issues which figures ranged from Defence, security to global and regional matters, Pentagon officials said. Top officials from both the sides were present at the meeting.

" It was very businesslike and focused," the official told PTI reflecting what the American side had been anticipating all along. " To say that they reviewed just the gamut of relations would be very stale," the official remarked.

Antony's visit comes at a time when the relationship between the United States and India have reached a new peak not just in the realm of defence cooperation but in other areas. The civilian nuclear deal could well be a topic of discussion between Antony and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice at the State Department, to be followed by a meeting at the White House with National Security Advisor Stephen Hadley.