New Delhi: Prime Minister Modi arrived in the United States on Saturday evening to attend the quad summit hosted by President Biden in Wilmington Delaware- an important diplomatic visit that the international community was eagerly awaiting. The visit comes just a few days before the US Presidential election. Also, at a time the world is witnessing a war-like situation emerging out of the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
Speaking to ETV Bharat, an expert hailed the Quad leadership for coming up with an innovative solution by proposing to host the 2024 Summit in the US and pushing the Summit in India to 2025.
“The leaders have been creative in deciding that India can organise the summit next year and let the United States host it this year, which demonstrates their conviction and commitment. If the summit had not taken place, it could have sent out a message to countries like China and Russia that the quad leaders have lost interest in the Quad and that they are not keen on taking forward the subjective”, India’s ex-diplomat Ashok Sajjanhar said.
Amb. Ashok Sajjanhar has worked for the Indian Foreign Service for over three decades. He was the ambassador of India to Kazakhstan Sweden and Latvia and has worked in diplomatic positions in Washington DC Brussels Moscow Geneva Tehran Dhaka and Bangkok.
It is important to note that the quad leaders have met six times so far, with four of those meetings held in person since Biden elevated the Quad to a leadership-level forum in 2021. This summit will be Biden’s last Quad meeting, an alliance he prioritised and raised to a higher significance level during his first year as president.
Sajjanhar opined that the summit will set a tone for all the leaders to come together and discuss global issues particularly the Middle East crisis and Russia-Ukraine conflict.
He also pointed out that discussions are expected to be held both in Quad and bilateral format as to what the stage of the conflict is. “I don’t expect any output in terms of peace proposal from India coming up during PM Modi’s visit,” he added.
It is pertinent to note that the 2024 US elections are scheduled to be held on Tuesday, November 5. It is to be noted that 435 seats in the United States House of Representatives and 34 of the 100 seats in the United States Senate will be contested to determine the membership of the 119th United States Congress.
PM Modi’s visit also assumes significance as it comes just a few days before the election in America commences. Republican nominee and former US President Donald Trump too, showed his interest in meeting PM Modi during his visit to the US, as per Trump's statement on September 17.
However, India has not confirmed Trump’s about the meeting. On September 19, two days ahead of Modi’s visit, the Ministry of External Affairs refused to confirm or deny the potential Modi-Trump meeting. “There are many meetings with the Prime Minister right now which we are trying to fix,” Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said on Thursday.
In 2019, then-US President Trump hosted PM Modi in Texas at an event attended by an estimated 50,000 people. A year later, Modi welcomed Trump in his home state Gujarat for an event which was attended by over 120,000 people.
When asked if any major changes are on the cards in India-US ties post-US Presidential election, ex-diplomat Ashok Sajjanhar said that India-US relations have been on an ascendant track for the last 25 years.
"Irrespective of the changes that have taken place in the US political climate, the relations have strengthened over the years. Be it a Republican or a democrat President in the US, or a UPA or an NDA-led government in India, both countries have worked together to build a better bond.
In the last 10 years, the relations between the US and India have strengthened consistently. I do not foresee any significant change and expect the relations to continue to progress. In substantive terms, it is going to continue to increase but there would be changes of style in the Presidential candidates, whoever comes to power”.
Ahead of the bilateral talks with President Biden and the Quad summit today, PM Modi hoped that the discussions throughout the day will contribute to making the planet better.
Taking to X, PM Modi said, "Landed in Philadelphia. Today’s programme will be focused on the Quad Summit and the bilateral meeting with US President Joe Biden. I am sure the discussions throughout the day will contribute to making our planet better and addressing key global challenges."
PM Modi arrived in the United States on Saturday (local time) for a three-day visit, starting with the Quad Leaders' Summit hosted by outgoing US President Joe Biden in Wilmington, Delaware. He was accorded a warm welcome by the Indian diaspora in Delaware. Along with other global leaders, he will attend the summit in Biden’s hometown later today.
Following this, Modi will head to New York, where he will address a large community event in Long Island on September 22. The next day, September 23, he will speak at the UN's Summit of the Future before returning to India. His address to the Indian diaspora will take place at Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in New York.
This year, President Biden will host the leaders of these nations, holding bilateral meetings with each of them. This marks the first time Biden has invited a foreign leader to Wilmington, signalling his strong relationships with PM Modi, Australian PM Anthony Albanese, and Japanese PM Fumio Kishida.
Speaking on ways to evolve the Quad in terms of global geopolitical shifts, Sajjanhar said, "Quad leaders need to make sure that whatever decisions are taken, are translated into tangible and concrete outcomes and also yield positive results for the countries of the Indo-Pacific. The leaders must expand their choices so that they are not forced to go by only as far as Chinese investments and financing infrastructure are concerned”.
According to the White House, leaders would also announce 'The Quad Cancer Moonshot' that will serve to strengthen the overall cancer care ecosystem in the Indo-Pacific by improving health infrastructure, expanding research collaborations, building data systems, and providing greater support for cancer prevention, detection, treatment, and care.
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