The U.S. and India will sign a defense agreement and boost trade ties in high-level talks that come as the South Asian nation sees its worst border conflict with China in four decades.

Secretary of State Michael Pompeo and Defense Secretary Mark Esper arrived in New Delhi Monday to attend a ministerial meeting with Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar and Defense Minister Rajnath Singh on Tuesday where they will discuss cooperation on pandemic response and challenges in the Indo-Pacific.

At their meeting on Monday evening, Pompeo and Jaishankar agreed the U.S.-India partnership was "critical to the security and prosperity of both countries, the Indo-Pacific region, and the world,” according to a U.S. statement. Esper and Singh discussed the expansion of information-sharing and agreed to collaborate on emerging technologies and to advance defense trade priorities.