Opportunity to enrich Indo-US partnership, says PM Modi as he leaves for US
Prime Minister Narendra Modi
The visit to the United States, at the special invitation of US President Joe Biden, willprovide an opportunity to enrich the depth and diversity of the Indo-US partnership, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Tuesday as he embarked on his four-day visit.
The PM, in his departure statement ahead of his visit to the US and Egypt, said he is travelling to the US on a State Visit after being invited by President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden, and this "special invitation" is a reflection of the vigour and vitality of the partnership between the democracies.
He asserted that US and India stand stronger in meeting shared global challenges. Earlier in the day, Modi left for the US and from there, he will head to Egypt before returning to India.
In his departure statement, Modi said his discussions with President Biden and other senior US leaders will provide an opportunity to consolidate bilateral cooperation as well as in plurilateral forums such as G20, Quad and IPEF (Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity).
PM Modi's US visit: Defence, trade to dominate Modi-Biden talks
The prime minister said he will travel to Cairo from Washington DC at the invitation of Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi. "I am excited to pay a State Visit to a close and friendly country for the first time," he said.
"I look forward to my discussions with President Sisi and senior members of the Egyptian government to impart further momentum to our civilisational and multifaceted partnership. I will also have the opportunity to interact with the vibrant Indian diaspora in Egypt," Modi said.
The four-day visit will see Modi for the second time addressing the joint session of the US Congress, meeting the business leaders and Indian expats, and attending a state dinner at the White House with US President Joe Biden.
House of Representatives and the Senate had extended the invitation to Modi to deliver a speech at the US Congress
"No Indian prime minister has addressed it twice. World over also, very few people have done that... Winston Churchill, Nelson Mandela... That's why its importance is huge," Foreign Minister S Jaishankar has said.
Modi is the third Indian leader to make a state visit to the US. The other two were by former president Sarvapalli Radhakrishnan in June 1963 and former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in November 2009.
He is also the third leader after France's Emmanuel Macron and South Korea's Yoon Suk Yeol to be invited by President Biden for a state visit and dinner.
WATCH WION LIVE HERE