Rajnath Singh set to meet US counterpart Hegseth in Malaysia, officials say

New Delhi: Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh is set to meet U.S. counterpart Pete Hegseth in Malaysia on Friday to ease the strain on ties from punitive US tariffs, two Indian officials said, laying the ground for a possible bilateral visit.

The talks, the first between the two men and on the sidelines of the regional ASEAN defence ministers' meeting in Kuala Lumpur, are expected to include a review of India's plans to purchase military hardware from the U.S., such as six Boeing P8I aircraft for the Indian Navy, as well as a fresh India-U.S. defence cooperation framework, the officials said.

"It is expected that the meeting will yield positive outcomes and pave the way for a bilateral visit, of either Hegseth to India or Singh to Washington," one of the officials said.

The officials declined to be named because they were not authorised to speak to the media.

India's defence ministry and the U.S. embassy in New Delhi did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Singh had earlier planned to meet Hegseth in Washington in August but the trip was cancelled after relations sank to their lowest point in decades after U.S. President Donald Trump doubled tariffs on Indian imports to 50% that month to punish India for buying Russian oil.

Both countries are now seeing a window to rebuild relations as Indian refiners cut Russian oil imports following U.S. sanctions last week on Moscow's top two crude exporters.

Trump, speaking in South Korea on Wednesday during a tour of Asia, said that he wanted to reach a trade deal with India.

Delhi, which has forged a close partnership with Washington in recent years, has said it is being unfairly targeted and that the U.S. and its European allies continue to trade with Moscow when it is in their interest.

Singh is expected to deliver remarks at the ASEAN meeting on November 1, India's defence ministry said in a statement earlier.