India announces world's biggest and fastest inoculation drive, giving millions of doses of Covid-19 vaccine to South Asian countries in the next few weeks, pushing back against China's dominating presence in the region.

Foreign minister Subrahmanya Jaishanka said that trust with China has been damaged after China - India border clash, causing first deaths in 45 years, and U.S - India's relationship was on upswing under the incoming Biden administration.

The U.S. and India are expected to sign a key military agreement this week, bolstering cooperation in the Pacific and Indian oceans to counter an increasingly assertive China, Indian officials said.