NEW YORK: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in the United States on Tuesday for a state visit that has been projected as a milestone in ties between the two countries that would deepen and diversify their partnership.
Modi received a delirious welcome in New York by flag-waving supporters chanting his name at JFK airport and dancing in front of his hotel, IANS reported.
"I am confident that my visit to the US will reinforce our ties based on shared values of democracy, diversity and freedom. Together we stand stronger in meeting the shared global challenges," Modi said in New Delhi as he embarked on the visit on board India1, the VVIP the Boeing 777 on Tuesday, arriving in the US the same day.
He was welcomed at the airport by Ruchira Kamboj, India's Permanent Representative to the UN, and Taranjit Singh Sandhu, India's Ambassador to the US, and by a crowd of supporters.
He drove in a motorcade to the heavily guarded Lotte Palace Hotel where supporters waving Indian and US flags gathered in the lobby and outside, some of them dancing the garba (a traditional Gujarati dance).
Flouting security guards, Modi came out of the hotel to greet the chanting crowd, while worried Secret Service agents and security personnel tried to form a tight physical cordon around him.
More supporters waited for him in the hotel lobby where he autographed pictures of him.
The potholed streets at the sides of the Lotte Palace Hotel were cordoned off and sand-laden dump trucks were stationed in front of the building for an extra measure of security.
International Yoga Day celebrations at the UN on Wednesday will be the highlight of his brief stay in the city.
The ninth International Yoga Day celebration, which will include mass yoga exercises, will be held from 8am to 9am New York time on Wednesday and will be video-cast on the UN network (webtv.un.org).
UN General Assembly President Csaba Korosi and Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed will join the Indian Prime Minister at the yoga event along with hundreds of diplomats from around the world and UN officials.
State visit
Afterwards, he will leave for Washington where a private meeting is scheduled with US President Joe Biden before the next day's ceremonial start to the state visit at the White House.
This is Modi's ninth trip to the US, but his first state visit that carries a higher level of pomp and circumstance – like a welcoming 21-gun salute and a state dinner.
He has been invited to speak to a joint session of US Congress and will be honoured at a state dinner hosted by Biden and at a luncheon hosted by Vice-President Kamala Harris and Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
Modi's plans for Wednesday in New York feature meetings with several thought leaders and business magnates.
The list includes Elon Musk, the owner of Twitter and the founder of Tesla; astrophysicist Neal de Grasse Tyson; author and theorist Nicholas Nassim Taleb; investor Ray Dialo, and Chandrika Tandon, a patron of the arts and education and the sister of former Pepsi Chair Indra Nooyi, and Nobel Prize winners -- molecular biologist Peter Agre and economist Paul Romer.
Grammy award winner Falguni Shah, the singer better known as Falu Shah, is also scheduled to meet with him.
In his statement previewing the visit, Modi said: "India-US ties are multifaceted, with deepening engagements across sectors."
The US is India's largest trading partner and the two countries collaborate closely in science and technology, education, health, defence and security fields, space and artificial intelligence, he said.
"Our two countries are also collaborating to further our shared vision of a free, open and inclusive Indo-Pacific," he added.
He said, "My discussions with President Biden and other senior US leaders will provide an opportunity to consolidate our bilateral cooperation as well as in plurilateral forums such as G20 (group of industrialised and emerging economies), Quad (the Indo-Pacific-oriented group of India, the US, Japan and Australia) and IPEF (Indo-Pacific Economic Forum)."
Human rights issues
Dozens of Biden's fellow Democrats urged him on Tuesday to raise human rights issues with Modi during his visit to Washington, according to their letter sent to Biden, Reuters reported.
The US lawmakers said they were concerned about religious intolerance, press freedoms, internet access and the targeting of civil society groups.
"We do not endorse any particular Indian leader or political party – that is the decision of the people of India — but we do stand in support of the important principles that should be a core part of American foreign policy," said the letter, led by Senator Chris Van Hollen and Representative Pramila Jayapal.
A total of 75 Democratic senators and members of the House of Representatives signed the letter, sent to the White House on Tuesday and first reported by Reuters.
"And we ask that, during your meeting with Prime Minister Modi, you discuss the full range of issues important to a successful, strong, and long-term relationship between our two great countries," the letter said.
Washington hopes for closer ties with the world's largest democracy, which it sees as a counterweight to China, but rights advocates worry that geopolitics will overshadow human rights issues. Several US rights groups plan protests during Modi's visit.
The State Department's annual report on human rights practices released in March listed "significant human rights issues" and abuses in India.
‘Differences’
Modi will address a joint meeting of the House and Senate on Thursday, one of the highest honours Washington affords to foreign dignitaries.
"A series of independent, credible reports reflect troubling signs in India toward the shrinking of political space, the rise of religious intolerance, the targeting of civil society organizations and journalists, and growing restrictions on press freedoms and internet access," the lawmakers said in the letter.
They said they joined Biden in welcoming Modi to the US, and want a "close and warm relationship" between the people of the two countries, saying that friendship should be based on shared values and "friends can and should discuss their differences in an honest and forthright way."
"That is why we respectfully request that – in addition to the many areas of shared interests between India and the US – you also raise directly with Prime Minister Modi areas of concern," the letter said.
Speaking to reporters before Modi arrived in Washington, White House national security spokesperson John Kirby declined comment on whether Biden would raise the issue, but that it is "commonplace" for Biden to raise concerns about human rights.
INDO-ASIAN NEWS SERVICE (IANS) and REUTERS