Marco Rubio heads to Central Asia and India for trade

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio is due to leave late Saturday for Central and South Asia in a trip focused on commercial ties and US influence in a region where Russia and China remain major players.

Rubio will lead a delegation of 200 business leaders to Uzbekistan, where he is expected to take part Monday in a C5+1 meeting with ministers from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.

A senior State Department official said Rubio would show Washington's goodwill toward a “deepening partnership across Central Asia”, especially in the energy sector.

Central Asia is rich in resources and has a population of about 80 million. The former Soviet republics remain linked to Moscow through energy pipelines, security ties and migration networks, while China is the main trade partner of all five Central Asian countries.

After Uzbekistan, Rubio is due to travel to India, with stops in Mumbai and Jamnagar. A senior US official said Washington and New Delhi were “very close” to a trade deal after months of negotiations.

The official said Rubio would meet Indian business leaders and raise plans by Reliance Industries to finance a refinery in Texas. Reliance is led by Indian businessman Anant Ambani.