Trump embarks on a 12-day trip later this week to visit Japan, South Korea, China, Vietnam and Philippines. He will not be paying a visit to India this time.
"It certainly plays a big role," White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders told reporters at her daily news conference when asked about India's role in the Indo-Pacific region.
"Does this administration see India as a pivotal part of your strategy when it comes to the Asia-Pacific more broadly?" she was asked.
"India can bring so much, not only to the region, but to the world. In addition, many American jobs, through greater trade and cooperation with that country," she said, referring to the major India policy speech given by the Secretary of State Rex Tillerson last month, soon after which he travelled to India.
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Asked if Tillerson's India policy was a China containment policy, the State Department spokesperson said the top American diplomat had said this before with China "privately".
"I think the Secretary -- what he said in his speech -- about China, in his speech about India, was something that the Secretary has said with China privately before. So some of those in the past have been private conversations, and now, they're just becoming more public conversations," she said.
"But let me just say, I know that the president is very much looking forward to his trip to China. It is going to be a lengthy trip, a robust trip. And one of the top issues that will be discussed with China is certainly the DPRK," the spokesperson said.
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