Yoga, meal with the Bidens, meet with CEOs: PM Modi’s packed days during US visit
Yoga, meal with the Bidens, meet with CEOs: PM Modi’s packed days during US visit
It’s a big year of geopolitics for India and Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s upcoming trip to the United States is one of the most important diplomatic visits of 2023. The PM will travel to the US from 21 June to 24 June on what is his first official state visit to the country.
As President Joe Biden himself said “everyone in the whole country” wants to meet the Indian premier. It should come as no surprise then that Modi has a packed schedule as he visits Washington and New York.
We take a look at what the PM will do in the US and whom will he meet.
Yoga Day in New York: 21 June
The PM will reach New York on 20 June and is expected to be welcomed by a group of Indian Americans at the Andrews Air Force Base.
On 21 June, Modi will lead an International Yoga Day function at the United Nations Secretariat. Can there be a better ambassador for the traditional Indian practice, now adopted by millions across the world than Modi?
The leader is a known yoga practitioner and has been leading the Yoga Day celebrations in India since 2015. Months after Modi first came to power, on 11 December 2014, the United Nations proclaimed 21 June as the International Day of Yoga.
Don’t miss: Firstpost Podcast: How Narendra Modi Popularised Yoga globally
United Nations Resident Coordinator in India, Shombi Sharp, said in an interview with ANI, “International Yoga Day which came into force, I believe in 2015 was supported by 175 countries very very quickly. Everybody I think in the world got on the board and understood, what an important and joyful day that is when we look at the international calendar.”
He said that Modi has been “pushing for international recognition of yoga and supported the International Day” and hence the PM leading the yoga session at the UN Secretariat will be a “big deal”.
Modi will be joined by several top Indian Americans at the UN complex in New York.
Bilateral and state dinner in Washington: 22 June
The PM will then fly to Washington and on the morning of 22 June he will get an official welcome at the South Lawn of the White House with a 21-gun salute. More than 7,000 Indian Americans will gather to witness this.
Modi and Biden will hold a bilateral meeting, which is expected to focus on defence and technology partnership between the two countries and climate change. Delegation talks and press statements by two leaders will follow.
In the afternoon, Modi will address a joint session of the US Congress for the second time, only the first Indian leader to do so. He will share his vision of India’s future and speak on the global challenges facing the two countries, according to top Congressional leaders.
Modi first addressed the US Congress during his visit in June 2016.
The day will round off will a state dinner, hosted for the PM by President Biden and First Lady Jill Biden. The event will be attended by prominent Americans and Indian Americans.
“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.
Lunch at the US state department, meet with CEOs: 23 June
On 23 June, PM Modi will attend a lunch hosted by the US state department. He will be joined by US vice president Kamala Harris and Secretary of State Anthony Blinken.
The PM will also give a speech at an event organised by the US-India Strategic Partnership Forum, an independent non-profit in Washington DC. Top American CEOs and prominent leaders will be in attendance. Modi could also hold a meeting with a select group of CEOs.
The Indian leader is expected to address the Indian diaspora at an event organised at the Ronald Reagan Centre in Washington. Those attending will be Indian-origin doctors, hoteliers, lawyers and businessmen, according to a report in ANI.
Modi is expected to make various other speeches during his visit that will highlight India’s success story, economic growth, digital payment infrastructure and the country’s recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.
After the diaspora event, the PM is expected to fly out.
With inputs from agencies
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