No more shunning: US to roll out red carpet for Modi
10 Sept 2014 5:53 AM IST
Gone are the days of boycotting the former Gujarat chief minister on moral grounds. Forgotten are the visa restrictions on him imposed in 2005 and relaxed only as late as 2013, when it became evident that Modi was aiming for the top spot. Now it’s red carpet time as far as White House is concerned.
Not only is the Barack Obama-led US administration rolling out the proverbial red carpet for India’s 15th prime minister, it is aggressively courting Modi in its bid to up the Indo-US strategic ties. White House sources have confirmed that US president Obama and Indian PM Modi would meet not once but twice in Washington, after the three-day United Nations General Assembly concludes in New York City in the last week of September.
Obama will welcome Modi on 29 and 30 September, hosting a special dinner in the latter’s honour in White House, while formal bilateral and delegation-level meetings will be held on 30 September. In addition, vice president Joe Biden will hold a lunch at the State Department on 30 September, while there will be a community reception at the Madison Square Gardens.
As a mark of Modi’s special place in American hearts, he will be hosted in the iconic Blair House (opposite White House), which had seen former prime minister Manmohan Singh residing in it during his state visit to the USA when the civil nuclear deal was inked in 2008.
According to the White House press secretary, Modi and Obama ‘will discuss ways to accelerate economic growth, bolster security cooperation, and collaborate in activities that bring long-term benefits to both countries and the world. They will also focus on regional issues, including current developments in Afghanistan, Syria and Iraq, where India and the United States can work together with partners towards a positive outcome.’
Even though the US still hasn’t appointed a new ambassador to India (former counsel Nancy Powell was called back just before the election results were out), the overtures from Washington have been too rosy in the last few months.
US apprehensions over Modi’s intentions became evident when the newly elected Indian PM took his own time to return the courtesy call to president Obama when the latter had phoned to congratulate.
Clearly, Modi’s electoral victory and the thumping mandate accorded to him in the general elections have been enough to reconfigure America’s troubled relationship with the man. Staunch Modi antagonists, including activists and big names in secular intelligentsia, had ‘written’ to President Obama to prevent Modi’s entry into US soil when he was invited by Indian American industrialists to address them at the famous Wharton Business School.
That the then Gujarat CM’s decision to address via video link had ended the bitter squabble might have been forgotten by the policymakers in Washington, it is likely to remain, along with the prolonged visa denial, a thorn in Modi-Obama one-to-one relationship.
Not only is the Barack Obama-led US administration rolling out the proverbial red carpet for India’s 15th prime minister, it is aggressively courting Modi in its bid to up the Indo-US strategic ties. White House sources have confirmed that US president Obama and Indian PM Modi would meet not once but twice in Washington, after the three-day United Nations General Assembly concludes in New York City in the last week of September.
Obama will welcome Modi on 29 and 30 September, hosting a special dinner in the latter’s honour in White House, while formal bilateral and delegation-level meetings will be held on 30 September. In addition, vice president Joe Biden will hold a lunch at the State Department on 30 September, while there will be a community reception at the Madison Square Gardens.
As a mark of Modi’s special place in American hearts, he will be hosted in the iconic Blair House (opposite White House), which had seen former prime minister Manmohan Singh residing in it during his state visit to the USA when the civil nuclear deal was inked in 2008.
According to the White House press secretary, Modi and Obama ‘will discuss ways to accelerate economic growth, bolster security cooperation, and collaborate in activities that bring long-term benefits to both countries and the world. They will also focus on regional issues, including current developments in Afghanistan, Syria and Iraq, where India and the United States can work together with partners towards a positive outcome.’
Even though the US still hasn’t appointed a new ambassador to India (former counsel Nancy Powell was called back just before the election results were out), the overtures from Washington have been too rosy in the last few months.
US apprehensions over Modi’s intentions became evident when the newly elected Indian PM took his own time to return the courtesy call to president Obama when the latter had phoned to congratulate.
Clearly, Modi’s electoral victory and the thumping mandate accorded to him in the general elections have been enough to reconfigure America’s troubled relationship with the man. Staunch Modi antagonists, including activists and big names in secular intelligentsia, had ‘written’ to President Obama to prevent Modi’s entry into US soil when he was invited by Indian American industrialists to address them at the famous Wharton Business School.
That the then Gujarat CM’s decision to address via video link had ended the bitter squabble might have been forgotten by the policymakers in Washington, it is likely to remain, along with the prolonged visa denial, a thorn in Modi-Obama one-to-one relationship.
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