Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will meet US President Joe Biden and, for a second time, address a joint session of the US Congress, India’s Ministry of External Affairs said on Friday, ahead of next week’s visit.
Modi will arrive in the US on June 21 to lead the celebrations of International Day of Yoga at the UN in New York, before receiving a ceremonial welcome at the White House the following day.
He will address Congress on the invitation of its Democratic and Republican leaders who announced the invitation earlier this month, saying that the speech would celebrate the “enduring friendship” between the US and India.
“At the invitation of Congressional Leaders, including the Hon. Speaker of the House of Representatives Mr. Kevin McCarthy and Hon. Speaker of the Senate Mr. Charles Schumer, Prime Minister (Modi) will address a Joint Sitting of the US Congress on June 22,” the Ministry of External Affairs said in a statement.
“On June 23, Prime Minister (Modi) will be jointly hosted at a luncheon by H.E. Ms. Kamala Harris, Vice President and Mr. Antony Blinken, Secretary of State.”
This will be the second time for Modi to addresses Congress after attending its joint session in 2016.
Such an opportunity is granted usually only to the closest allies of the US.
“This is the second time Mr. Modi would be addressing the US Congress, becoming the first prime minister of India to do so,” Harsh V. Pant, vice president of the Observer Research in New Delhi, told Arab News.
The visit is likely to be focused on defense and technology, bolstering a security partnership that has been developing for the past few years, under Modi’s administration. It is expected to yield a series of new defense deals.
In 2016, Washington designated New Delhi as a “major defense partner” and signed the Logistics Exchange Memorandum of Agreement, which allows the militaries of both countries to share bases for strategic purposes.
In 2018, the two nations signed the Communications Compatibility and Security Agreement for “interoperability between the two militaries and sale of high-end technology from the US to India.”
In 2020, India and the US signed a major new defense pact allowing New Delhi to access top-secret satellite and sensor data from Washington, an essential tool in military applications and operations.
“Technology and defense are going to be the drivers of this very important relationship going forward and that is what is being prioritized in the relationship,” Pant said.
“This visit will see big-ticket defense announcements underscoring the comfort level that has grown between the two nations.”
It also comes at a time of intensifying competition between the US and China in the Indo-Pacific region and India’s attempts to lift its geopolitical status and decrease decades-long reliance on Russian weapons and military equipment.
“There is a recognition in India that over dependence on Russia for defense needs to change and there is a recognition in the USA that Indian capabilities have to be nurtured because India is an important critical actor in the Indo-Pacific, and that strategic convergence is becoming more and more palpable,” Pant said.
When he wraps up the US trip, Modi will fly to Egypt on June 24 for his first official visit to Cairo.
“The visit is at (the) invitation of H.E. Mr. Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, President of Egypt, which he extended to the Prime Minister in January 2023 when he graced our Republic Day celebrations as the ‘Chief Guest,’” the Ministry of External Affairs said in its statement.
“During the State Visit of President Sisi in January 2023, it was agreed to elevate the relationship to a ‘Strategic Partnership.”