Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in New York on Tuesday on the first leg of his maiden state visit to the US during which he will lead the International Yoga Day event at the United Nations Headquarters and hold bilateral talks with President Joe Biden. He was welcomed by a group of Indian community members in America, with national flag in their hands, outside the airport.
Visuals showed the Prime Minister shaking hands with a few of the members as they chanted 'Modi, Modi' slogans.
Some of the community members were also seen waiting outside his hotel to greet him. Smita Mickey Patel, one of the members of the Indian community said, "I think his visit will make a great impact on the US as he is doing a really great job globally as well. He is helping out the whole world with his pure heart and is making India proud."
Though PM Modi has made several previous visits to the United States, this will be his first with the full diplomatic status of an official state visit, just the third of Biden's presidency and third by any Indian leader.
"It's a milestone in our relationship...It is a very significant visit, very important visit," India's Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra told reporters on Monday. A key achievement expected to be showcased is in the area of defence cooperation, especially between military industries of the two countries, Kwatra said, as India seeks to produce more weapons and equipment at home for itself and also for export.
During the three-day visit, PM Modi will be hosted by Biden for a state dinner and a private family dinner, attend lunch with Vice-President Kamala Harris and Secretary of State Antony Blinken, and address a joint session of Congress for the second time in nine years.
He will address an invitation-only gathering of diaspora leaders from across the country at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center in Washington on June 23. PM Modi will also meet American CEOs and lead an International Yoga Day event at the UN headquarters.
In Egypt, Modi to visit mosque Bohras
During his state visit to Egypt, on his way back from the US, PM Modi will visit the Al-Hakim mosque in old Cairo which was recently restored by the Dawoodi Bohra community, the government said. Modi will arrive in Cairo on June 24 for what will be the first bilateral visit by any Indian PM to Egypt since 1997.
The 11th century Shia mosque reopened this February after renovation work over six years, which was co-funded by the Bohra community that is concentrated in India. Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi has in the past received leaders of the Dawoodi Bohra sect from India in Cairo and hailed their openness to other sects and religions.
