PM Modi arrives in Washington to attend Quad summit, address UNGA

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday local time arrived in Washington for his much-touted three-day US visit. During his visit, he will address the UN General Assembly and attend the Quad leaders Summit as well as hold a bilateral meet with US President Joe Biden at the White House.

Washington: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday local time arrived in Washington for his much-touted three-day US visit. Prime Minister Modi was received by US department of state officials including T. H. Brian McKeon, U.S. Deputy Secretary of State for Management and Resources at Joint Base Andrews in Washington DC upon his arrival. He was welcomed by India's Ambassador to the US Taranjit Singh Sandhu, along with the Defence attache including Brigadier Anoop Singhal, Air Commodore Anjan Bhadra and naval attache Commodore Nirbhaya Bapna.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi steps out of his car to meet people who were waiting to welcome him at Joint Base Andrews in Washington DC

During his visit, he will address the UN General Assembly and attend the Quad leaders Summit as well as hold a bilateral meet with US President Joe Biden at the White House. More than a hundred members from the Indian Community gathered at the airport to welcome the Indian leader. As PM Modi's plane landed in Washington, exuberant members of the Indian diaspora started cheering. Despite the rain, the Indian diaspora waited patiently for PM Modi's arrival.The prime minister travelled to the US on the recently-inducted custom-made Boeing 777 aircraft.

People hold the Indian National flag as they cheer & wait for Prime Minister Narendra Modi to arrive at Joint Base Andrews in Washington DC

Biden will host PM Modi at the White House on September 24, this is going to be the first in-person meeting between the two leaders after Biden took over as the US President on January 20. This is Prime Minister Modi's first visit abroad beyond the neighbourhood since the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak. Ahead of leaving for the US to participate in Quad Leaders' Summit, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday said his visit will be an occasion to strengthen the strategic partnership with the United States, Japan and Australia.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi meets people who were waiting to welcome him at Joint Base Andrews in Washington DC

"I will be visiting the USA from September 22 to September 25, 2021, at the invitation of His Excellency President Joe Biden of the United States of America. During my visit, I will review the India-US Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership with President Biden and exchange views on regional and global issues of mutual interest," Prime Minister said in his Departure Statement.

"I am also looking forward to meeting Vice President Kamala Harris to explore opportunities for cooperation between our two nations particularly in the area of science and technology," he added. As per the statement issued by Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla, PM Modi and President Biden are expected to discuss ways to stem radicalisation and combat terrorism.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi meets people who were waiting to welcome him at Joint Base Andrews in Washington DC

They are also expected to discuss ways to bolster defence, trade ties, security collaborations and clean energy partnership among others," PM Modi and Biden will discuss the current regional security situation following the recent developments in Afghanistan.PM Modi will also hold business interactions during his US visit from September 22-25.

Prime Minister Modi will attend the first in-person summit of the Quad hosted by the US President on Friday, which will be attended by Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga of Japan and Prime Minister Scott Morrison of Australia. PM Modi will address the General Debate of the High-Level Segment of 76th Session of UN General Assembly (UNGA) on September 25 in New York.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi meets people who were waiting to welcome him at Joint Base Andrews in Washington DC

The theme for this year's general debate is building resilience through hope to recover from COVID-19, rebuild sustainability, respond to the needs of the planet, respect the rights of people and revitalise the United Nations. While addressing the UN General Assembly, the Prime Minister will dwell on the important issues, including the regional situation, cross border terrorism, global efforts to combat COVID-19 and climate change and the need to reform multilateral institutions.

Another element of the Prime Minister's visit would be bilateral meetings with our close partners Japan and Australia where he will hold several bilateral meetings including with US President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris.PM Modi is accompanied by a high-level delegation consisting of National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and senior officials including Shringla.

ANI