Prime Minister Narendra Modi has accepted an invitation from US President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden to undertake an official state visit to the United States from June 20 to 23. The Ministry of External Affairs has announced that the visit will commence in New York, where the Prime Minister will lead the celebrations of the International Day of Yoga at the United Nations Headquarters on June 21.
The following day, Prime Minister Modi will travel to Washington D.C. where he will receive a ceremonial welcome at the White House. PM Modi is scheduled to hold meetings with President Biden on that day as part of their ongoing high-level discussions. Additionally, he has been invited by several Congressional leaders, including Speaker of the House of Representatives Kevin McCarthy and Speaker of the Senate Charles Schumer, to address a joint session of the US Congress on the same day.
On June 22, an impressive welcome ceremony will take place on the South Lawns of the White House, followed by a State Dinner hosted by the Bidens in honour of Prime Minister Modi. The dinner is expected to be an extravagant affair with outstanding entertainment, celebrating strong US-India relations. The event has generated significant interest, with requests for tickets pouring in daily.
On June 23, Prime Minister will be jointly hosted at a luncheon by Vice President Kamala Harris and Secretary of State Antony Bilnken.
In addition to the official engagements, PM Modi is scheduled to have interactions with leading CEOs, professionals, and other stakeholders. He will also meet members of the Indian Diaspora.
A US senior administration official said in an interaction with news agency PTI, “I think the State Dinner will be really a celebration of the US-India relations with supporters and advocates coming from India, but also around the United States. We have a saying …it’s a very hot ticket. Hardly a day goes by when I haven’t received requests from people to get the last tickets to the state dinner. I believe it will be a wonderful celebration.”
In the lead-up to the visit, the Pentagon has expressed anticipation that this visit will establish new milestones in the bilateral relationship between the two countries. Notably, significant announcements pertaining to defence cooperation and the enhancement of India’s indigenous military industrial base are expected to be made during the visit, with the potential for historic achievements in these areas.
From the USA, Prime Minister Modi will travel to Cairo to pay a State Visit to the Arab Republic of Egypt from 24-25 June 2023. He is visiting Egypt following an invitation from President Abdel Fattah El-Sis during his visit to India in January to attend the Republic Day celebrations as the chief guest.
Apart from his talks with President Sisi, PM Modi is likely to interact with senior dignitaries from the Egyptian Government, some prominent Egyptian personalities, as well as the Indian community in Egypt. Relations between India and Egypt are based on ancient trade and economic linkages as well as cultural and deep-rooted people-to-people ties. During the State Visit of President Sisi in January 2023, it was agreed to elevate the relationship to a ‘Strategic Partnership’.
