Washington DC:
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Donald Trump met today for the first time since Trump returned to the White House for a second term. PM Modi is one of the first global leaders to travel to the US for an official visit and meet Donald Trump after his electoral win.
The two leaders are holding bilateral talks at the White House where they will discuss the entire gamut of ties. The focus however, shall be on trade, tariffs, and immigration.
The two leaders shook hands and hugged each other before they sat together and addressed the international press at the White House immediately before holding bilateral talks. “I appreciate how President Trump always keeps his country first. I do the same – that is something that we have in common,” PM Modi said, to which Donald Trump added that “He is doing a great job in India and he (PM Modi) and I share a great friendship and we will continue to build on ties between our nations.”
The two leaders took questions from the media – including one on the Russia-Ukraine War as well as the crisis in Bangladesh and US’s deep state being allegedly involved in it. “The US has not been involved in Bangladesh,” said Donald Trump, adding that “I am leaving the Bangladesh issue to PM Modi” to resolve.
Answering the question on India’s possible role in ending the Russia-Ukraine war, PM Modi said “I support Donald Trump’s efforts towards finding a possible solution to end the war. The world somehow feels India has been neutral during the war. But I would like to reiterate that India has not been neutral – instead, it has been on the side of peace.”
“When I met President Putin, I had even said that ‘this is not the era for war’. I had also said that solutions cannot be found in the battlefield. They can only come when all parties sit at the table for dialogue,” he added.
On a question about tariffs and possible trade deals between India and the US, Donald Trump said “Prime Minister Modi is a great leader,” adding that “We’re going to make some wonderful trade deals for India and the US.”
However, just over an hour before the bilateral meeting, President Trump officially announced reciprocal tariffs on all nations. He also spoke about how India is “right at the top of the pack” when it comes to tariffs. PM Modi’s priority during the meeting is likely to be on negotiating favourable deals with Washington, with the aim to avoid high tariffs and expand the trade basket between the two nations.
Matters concerning foreign investment, energy, defence, technology, visas, and immigration are also high on the agenda.
This is PM Modi’s 10th visit to the United States as prime minister and fourth with Trump as President. Biden hosted him at a ceremonial state visit in 2024. PM Modi’s first visit to the US as prime minister was in 2014 when Barack Obama was the President.