PM Modi Arrives at White House for Historic Meeting with President Trump
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Synopsis
On February 14, Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived at the White House for his first meeting with President Trump. They will discuss defense, energy, trade, and the Quad partnership, aiming for a fair bilateral trade agreement by 2025.
Key Takeaways
- Modi's first meeting with Trump in the White House.
- Focus on defense and energy sales to India.
- Trade discussions aiming for a deal by 2025.
- Strengthening the Quad partnership.
- Initial positive signals from India regarding trade policies.
Washington, Feb 14 (NationPress) Prime Minister Narendra Modi has arrived at the White House for his inaugural meeting with President Donald Trump during the latter's second non-consecutive term.
The two leaders plan to engage in discussions covering a vast array of topics alongside their respective delegations.
Senior officials from the Trump administration mentioned to reporters that the United States aims to enhance and prioritize defense and energy exports to India.
These officials added that the two heads of state would build on the achievements from Trump’s first term and focus their discussions later on Thursday on crucial matters like defense, trade, energy, infrastructure, and regional collaborations.
They are also anticipated to restart negotiations regarding a trade agreement, potentially picking up from where discussions halted during Trump's initial term, with aspirations to finalize a deal by 2025.
This marks their first in-person meeting following Trump’s return to the White House for a non-consecutive second term; his first term spanned from 2017 to 2021. They previously spoke via phone on two occasions, once in November and again in January.
“We will strive to enhance defense sales to India to ensure the prioritization of utilizing American technology,” stated one official.
“The President is also focused on unleashing American energy resources globally, with India being a top priority as a key importer of America’s natural resources to fuel their economy.”
The leaders will also deliberate on improving the trade relationship, which, as one official put it, “aims to reduce our bilateral trade deficit and foster an expanded fair trade relationship.”
“There has been some positive initial feedback from the Indian government that has been well received by the Trump administration (but) these are early yet modest steps,” one official remarked, referencing recent duty cuts announced in the annual Budget proposals.
“There’s still much work to be done. I anticipate that the outcome of today’s meeting will generate further momentum towards establishing a solidified, fair, and I emphasize a fair bilateral trade arrangement between our two dynamic and growing economies, with the hope of having such an agreement finalized within the calendar year 2025.
The President and the Prime Minister will also explore ways to strengthen the Quad partnership to enhance stability and peace throughout the Indo-Pacific, the officials noted.
