US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta headed to India on Tuesday for talks focusing on Washington’s strategic shift towards Asia in face of the increasing role of China.

US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta headed to India on Tuesday for talks focusing on Washington's strategic shift towards Asia in face of the increasing role of China.

During his two-day visit, Panetta is expected to discuss expanding defense ties, the NATO war effort in Afghanistan and China's increasing economic and military power in the region, US officials said.
Panetta is due to meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and National Security Adviser Shiv Shankar Menon on Tuesday afternoon along with other officials, before giving a policy speech on Wednesday, officials said.

In President Barack Obama's new strategy blueprint unveiled in January, India is the only country mentioned by name as a vital partner.
"Strategically, we see India as a partner with a lot of common interests," a senior defense official said on condition of anonymity.

India, for its part, has expressed irritation over US export restrictions that prevent it from gaining access to some high-tech US weaponry.
On the war in Afghanistan, India worries that the departure of most US and NATO forces by the end of 2014 could empower extremists.

Last week, India called for greater coordination with the United States on Afghanistan.

The India trip, part of a nine-day tour of Asia, follows stops in Vietnam and Singapore in which Panetta signaled US plans to bolster its naval presence in the face of a more assertive China.