US opens its 5th Consulate in Bengaluru

Together, with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, US Ambassador to India, Eric Garcetti dedicated the site of the US consulate, which is intended to become the fifth US consulate in India. 

The consulate will expand on the more than thirty-year presence of the US government in Bengaluru by increasing our diplomatic engagement on economic and political issues, conducting public diplomacy and people-to-people engagements, and augmenting existing US and Foreign Commercial Service capabilities. 

Initially, consular services will continue to be performed at the US Consulate in Chennai and other US diplomatic posts in India, the statement added. 

Garcetti and Jaishankar, joined by Karnataka deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar, announced their efforts to fulfill a commitment made by US President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the Prime Minister's State Visit to Washington, DC, in June 2023. 

The initiative to expand the US presence in Bengaluru will broaden and deepen the long-standing ties between the United States and the state of Karnataka and build upon long-standing diplomatic engagement and strategic partnership in Karnataka, as per the statement. 

The state is home to nearly 700 US companies and tens of thousands of US citizens who live, visit, study, and work in Karnataka - creating jobs in both the United States and India. -- ANI