America's top educational, cultural diplomat to travel to India

Washington: A top American and cultural diplomat will be travelling to India this week to attend the G20 Culture Ministerial and hold talks with her Indian counterparts on bilateral issues.

In India from August 22 to 27, the trip of Assistant Secretary of State for Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA) Lee Satterfield comes on the heels of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s official state visit to the United States in June and precedes the G20 Leaders’ Summit which is slated to occur in early September.

Satterfield will be visiting Varanasi and New Delhi.

In Varanasi, Assistant Secretary Satterfield will address the G20 Culture Ministerial on Saturday, August 26, as well as participate in several bilateral meetings with G20 members and partners, including UNESCO.

Her “participation underscores the United States’ strong commitment to protecting, preserving, and promoting culture through robust international engagement, and our support for the G20 Culture Working Group,” the State Department said in a media release.

Prior to the G20 Culture Ministerial, Satterfield will travel to New Delhi, to visit an Ambassadors Fund for Cultural Preservation (AFCP) project site, tour the American Center in New Delhi (ACND), and engage with exchange programme alumni.

She will also meet with government officials and key private-sector stakeholders to discuss a host of shared priorities, including international education, sports diplomacy, cultural heritage, and the creative economy, a media release said.