US Ambassador Sergio Gore Visits Leh, Meeting Senior Officials Amid High Tensions with China

After calling Pakistan's statement that J & K is an integral part of India "baffling," US Ambassador to India Sergio Gore arrived in Leh on Thursday morning for the second leg of his visit to J & K and Ladakh. The top American diplomat flew directly from Srinagar to Kushok Bakula Rimpoche Airport. From there, he was immediately escorted to a large security convoy. During this visit, Ambassador Gore will meet with senior officials and political leaders of the Ladakh administration. US Ambassador to India Sergio Gore is scheduled to hold a high-level meeting with Ladakh Lieutenant Governor Vinay Kumar Saxena in Leh on Thursday afternoon. This is the first visit by a sitting US Ambassador to the strategically sensitive Himalayan region since the Galwan Valley clashes between Indian troops and China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) in June 2020. This is also his first official visit to Ladakh as a Union Territory. The significance of this visit, after the statement on J & K, has now shifted to the eastern Ladakh region, where the US Ambassador says tensions with China are high.