NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to be accompanied by a large trade and ministerial delegation during his upcoming visit to the US. These delegates will be from different sectors, including IT, defence, aviation and AI.
“One of the main objectives of this visit is to host bilateral meetings that will translate into announcements of various agreements pertaining to defence and critical technology, as well as setting up of manufacturing facilities in India,” said a source in the PMO.
Meanwhile, it is learnt that around 20 chief executive officers (CEO) of American companies, including that of MasterCard, Accenture and Coca-Cola, are likely to meet the Prime Minister in Washington, D.C. between June 22 and 23.
“The US-India Strategic Partnership Forum, headed by Mukesh Aghi, is likely to facilitate interactions between PM Modi and business honchos, including Adobe Systems CEO Shantanu Narayen, Accenture CEO Julie Sweet, Visa Inc’s Ryan McInerney, Mastercard’s Michael Miebach and Coca-Cola’s James Quincey,” they said.
Important members of the Indian diaspora too would be meeting the PM. Modi will address a gathering of 1,500 Indians at the John F Kennedy Centre. Meanwhile, the Biden administration has urged India to ease bureaucratic processes to facilitate contracts for drones. “Regulatory mechanisms will be eased to facilitate smooth trade between India and US,” a source said.
India-US bilateral trade reached $128.55 billion during the financial year 2022-23, making the US India’s largest trading partner.
During the same period, trade between India and China fell 1.5 per cent to $113.83 billion. Besides trade, talks will also take place on Ukraine, the Indo-Pacific security and China, said sources. They further added that not only will this be a historic visit, but will also set the precedent for enhancing trade and bilateral ties between the two countries.
“There will be new domains of strategic partnership announced during this visit. Industries of the two countries will come together. Issues faced by the Global South would be discussed too,” said the source, adding that PM Modi and President Biden will spend a lot of time in meetings with each other. Besides the ceremonial reception and the State dinner, one of the most anticipated events would be Modi’s address at the US Congress. This would be the second time Prime Minister Modi is speaking at the US Congress.
PM to interact with top business heads in the US
The US-India Strategic Partnership Forum, headed by Mukesh Aghi, is likely to facilitate interactions between PM Modi and business honchos, including Adobe Systems CEO Shantanu Narayen, Accenture CEO Julie Sweet, Visa Inc’s Ryan McInerney, Mastercard’s Michael Miebach and Coca-Cola’s James Quincey, according to sources in the PMO.
