International
oi-Deepika S
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will embark on an official state visit to the United States on June 21, at the invitation of President Joe Biden and First Lady Dr Jill Biden.
As President Joe Biden himself said everyone in the whole country wants to meet Indian premier and the Indian-Americans are gearing up to accord a grand welcome to PM Modi during his first state visit to the US.
As reported by US media, the ceremonial part of the visit-with all the bells and whistles is expected be captivating and breathtaking.
21 June: PM Modi to lead Yoga Day 2023 celebrations at UN HQ
The historic visit will commence in New York, where he will lead the celebrations of the International Day of Yoga at the United Nations Headquarters between 8 am and 9 am at its North Lawn. People from over 180 countries from different walks of life, including diplomats, academicians and entrepreneurs are expected to participate in the International Day of Yoga celebrations.
Since 2015, June 21 has been designated as the International Day of Yoga to raise awareness worldwide of the many benefits of practising yoga.
22 June: Bilateral and state dinner in Washington
Thereafter, PM Modi will travel to Washington D.C., where he will receive a ceremonial welcome at the South Lawn of the White House with a 21-gun salute. Nearly 7,000 Indian Americans will gather to witness this.
The prime minister will hold discussions with President Biden as part of their ongoing high-level dialogue.
Later in the day, PM Modi address a joint sitting of the US Congress on June 22 by Congressional leaders, including Republican House of Representatives Kevin McCarthy and Democratic Senate Speaker Charles Schumer. The prime minister first addressed the US Congress during his visit in June 2016.
President Biden and First Lady Jill Biden will host state dinner in honor of the Prime Minister on the same evening.
“A state dinner, always the social high point of a state visit, is planned meticulously, often months in advance. The menu typically features food and wines that reflect the culinary traditions of the guests of honour but with an American twist. It represents the friendship between the nations of the hosts and the honoured guests,” says the Bureau of Global Public Affairs (BGPA) in the US Department of State.
23 June: Lunch with Kamala Harris
On June 23, PM Modi will attend a luncheon hosted jointly by Vice President Kamala Harris and Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
Alongside the official engagements, PM Modi is scheduled to have interactions with CEOs, professionals, and other stakeholders, as well as meeting with the Indian diaspora.
After wrapping up his visit to the US, the Prime Minister will fly to Egypt for a state visit from June 24 to 25.
Why PM Modi’s US visit is significant?
PM Modi’s first state visit to the US signifies the highest level of honour and it has happened only twice in India’s history. This will also be the first time that an Indian prime minister will be addressing the US Congress twice.
“The prime minister is going on a State Visit, which signifies the highest level of honour. So, the honour that he will receive, has been accorded to a very few people, so far,” said External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar.
“The prime minister will address a Joint Session of the US Congress. No Indian prime minister has addressed it twice. So, it will be the first time. World over also, very few people have done that… Winston Churchill, Nelson Mandela. So, there are very few people who have addressed the US Congress twice,” Jaishankar said.
PM Modi’s US visit assumes huge importance and outcomes will be seen later, he said.
Asked whether PM’s US visit will send any message to China and Pakistan, Jaishankarsaid, “When a prime minister visits a country, it is to take our (India’s) relationship forward. I understand that it is a globalised world, so if something happens, it may or may not have an impact on others. We see it for our interests, from perspective of our relations”.
PM Modi-Biden talks to touch upon five significant issues
PM Modi and President Biden are expected to touch on five broad areas of significance -healthcare, technology, renewable energy, education and defence – which would be reflected in the joint statement, said India’s Ambassador to the US Taranjit Singh Sandhu.
“Technology is going to be a significant part and you know that technology is cross-cutting. Technology is not only a commercial aspect but also has a very strong strategic side. And trust and confidence are important bases of any technology sharing or collaboration,” Sandhu told PTI in an exclusive interview on Friday.
“One is healthcare and in that affordable healthcare, affordable medicines, affordable vaccines, and of course training, research, et cetera, all will be part of it. Number two is on the technology side, it is IT, digital startup innovation. All of them are in one basket,” he added.
On education and knowledge partnership there is a lot of movement, he said.
“In India, we have a new education policy. Of course, here I would like to mention that there are at present 200,000 Indian students (in the US). Two-thirds of them are in STEM areas. This student population this linkage is a very important linkage. But under the new education policy now the forward movement is going to be in establishing campus-to-campus relations, intertwining of degrees, joint research, work,” Sandhu said.
He said he has personally spoken to a large number of chancellors and presidents of universities and educational institutions.
“You have already seen that this has been carried forward. It’s one of the important elements of iCET that is the education collaboration and that will be a significant path,” he said.
“Finally, not the last and the least is the defence and the strategic side. As I mentioned, high tech is an important element. It is a cross-cutting area. High tech certainly has an impact,” he said.
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