John Kerry expresses regret

The US on Wednesday (Dec 18) expressed regret over the arrest and strip-search of senior Indian diplomat Devyani Khobragade and said this "isolated" incident should not hurt "close and vital" bilateral ties. Secretary of State John Kerry called up National Security Advisor Shivshankar Menon and expressed regret over the treatment meted out to Khobragade, the Consul General in New York, last week for alleged visa fraud, a State Department statement said, trying to quell the escalating diplomatic stand-off with India over the incident.