New Delhi: Sergio Gor, the United States’ Ambassador to India, arrived in the northeastern state of Manipur Friday where he held separate meetings with Manipur Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla and CM Yumnam Khemchand Singh.
Sources privy to his itinerary said Gor will spend a night in the state capital Imphal.
Gor is visiting the strife-torn state after his trip to Darjeeling, where he met Rajya Sabha MP and former foreign secretary Harsh Vardhan Sringla.
The US Ambassador’s visit to Manipur also comes weeks after his visit to Jammu and Kashmir, where he termed the Union Territory an “important part” of India and indicated a possible reevaluation of the American travel advisory for the region. This was the first such standalone visit by a US Ambassador to India since the abrogation of Article 370 in 2019.
Appreciated the opportunity to meet Manipur Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla @BhallaAjay26. We discussed the importance of continued U.S.-India engagement. @LokBhavManipur pic.twitter.com/gGkQfzcyCq
— Ambassador Sergio Gor (@USAmbIndia) September 11, 2026
Sergio Gor’s visit to Manipur also comes at a time when the state has been caught in a quagmire of ethnic strife between the Meitei and Kuki-Zo communities, which has only escalated in the past few months with episodes of violence between Kukis and Nagas.
According to the government’s own estimate, at least 306 people have been killed, and 49 are still missing in Manipur, where ethnic violence first flared up in May 2023, in the aftermath of a ‘Tribal Solidarity March’ organised in the hill districts to protest the Meitei community’s demand for Scheduled Tribes status.
Enjoyed hearing from Chief Minister @YKhemchandSingh about his vision for Manipur. We exchanged ideas about how the U.S. and India can work together to expand economic ties. The Chief Minister very kindly invited me back for the Manipur Sangai Festival. pic.twitter.com/rsntLQ7Uj8
— Ambassador Sergio Gor (@USAmbIndia) September 11, 2026
A few months after ethnic clashes erupted in the state, Eric Garcetti, the then US Ambassador to India, had offered to intervene in the issues “if asked”.
“Let me speak about Manipur first. We pray for peace there. When you ask us about the concern of the United States, I don’t think it’s a strategic concern. I think it’s about human concern.” Garcetti, a Biden appointee, had said in a press conference in Kolkata in July 2023. “You don’t have to be an Indian to care when children or individuals die in this sort of violence. We know peace as a precedent for so many good things,” he added.
Garcetti went on to add, “There has been so much progress in the Northeast and the East…We stand ready to assist in any way if asked. We know it’s an Indian matter and we pray for that peace and that it may come quickly. Because we can bring more collaboration, more projects, more investment if that peace is in place.”
When I first arrived in India, one of the first people to warmly welcome me was @harshvshringla. He also invited me to visit his home and constituency in Darjeeling. Today I finally had the chance to spend the day with him in one of the most beautiful parts of the country. If… pic.twitter.com/lUCVpe1jRh
— Ambassador Sergio Gor (@USAmbIndia) September 10, 2026
Sergio Gor is the second US Ambassador to visit Manipur in the last decade. Former Ambassador Kenneth Juster had visited the state in December 2018 to attend the Sangai Festival.
During his visit, Juster had also met with and held discussions with the then governor Najma Heptulla and chief minister N. Biren Singh, on development, regional connectivity, and ways to strengthen US-India relations. According to the statement released by the US Embassy at the time, he had also interacted with the NGO Social Service Awareness Organisation about their work, including the campaign to curb the spread of HIV and AIDS, in association with the Indian officer of the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention.
(Edited by Amrtansh Arora)