PM Modi US visit: From grand White House welcome to bold address; key highlights of Modi-Biden meet

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s grand welcome at the White House by US President Joe Biden, First Lady Jill Biden and massive fanfare gave a bold picture of how strong the ties between United States and India are in the 21^st century.

PM Modi and POTUS Joe Biden shared a warm embrace right outside the White House, displaying to the world the deep friendship between the two nations. The welcome received by PM Modi at the White House was nothing short of extravagant and made headlines across the world.

Indo-US ties on Thursday appeared to be on the cusp of an upward leap as President Joe Biden described them as one of the most defining relationships in the 21st century while Prime Minister Narendra Modi asserted that the US leader's commitment to their bond has inspired his country to take "bold and audacious" steps.

PM Modi’s grand welcome to Washington kicked off with a massive crown of Indian Americans chanting his name, and acapella group Penn Masala performing the iconic song ‘Chaiyya Chaiyya’ at the White House.

#WATCH | A banner welcoming PM Modi on his maiden State visit to the US was displayed at Times Square in New York yesterday pic.twitter.com/33YH1T9VPI

— ANI (@ANI) June 22, 2023

The Indian prime minister also gave a rousing speech at the White House right after Joe Biden, talking about the strong relations between the two countries. "Today India and the US are walking shoulder-to-shoulder from the depths of the ocean to heights of the sky, from ancient culture to artificial intelligence," PM Modi said.

"This grand welcome ceremony at the White House today is an honour and pride for the 1.4 billion people of India. It is also an honour for more than 4 million people of Indian origin in the US," the prime minister further added.

Later, PM Modi held one-on-one talks with Biden in the Oval Office of the White House before holding delegation-level talks. Both leaders discussed a wide range of issues of mutual and global interests, aimed at further boosting the Indo-US strategic relations in areas like defence, space, clean energy and critical technologies.

Another major highlight of the meeting was PM Modi presenting a unique gift to US First Lady Jill Biden – a rare green diamond made inside a lab, with a splendid cut and clarity.

Noting that Modi and Biden are meeting on all the three days of the Indian leader's stay in Washington, official sources said the prime minister's maiden state visit to the US is likely to deepen the two countries' like never before. This was the second interaction between the two leaders within 24 hours.

(With PTI inputs)

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