India, US to sign 2 pacts At Modi-Biden bilateral

The upcoming visit by Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the Quad summit emphasises several important aspects, including developing the Indo-Pacific region and implementing sustainable development goals, foreign secretary Vikram Misri said on Thursday.

India and the US will sign two pacts during the PM-President Joe Biden bilateral meet to be held on the sidelines of the Quad summit.

Misri said, "PM Modi will be visiting the US from September 21-23. This visit combines very important aspects. It has very important bilateral aspects to it, very important plurilateral aspects to it and equally important multilateral aspects to it. There will be interaction with a variety of foreign partners at the level of the prime minister. There will be interaction with the large Indian diaspora in the US. And there will be engagement with a host of business and industry leaders, amongst others."

Misri said the Quad's constructive agenda continues to be to "develop the Indo-Pacific, implementing sustainable development goals, delivering public goods, and having a strong focus on peace, prosperity and stability in the Indo-Pacific region".

"Our agenda includes covering health security, climate change, critical and emerging technology, HADR, connectivity, maritime security, and counter-terrorism," he said.

At the bilateral meeting with President Joe Biden, there will be an opportunity for both sides to exchange a few agreements - Indo-Pacific economy related framework agreement and India-US drug framework, Misri said.

On the possibility of a meeting with former US President Donald Trump, Misri said, "There are many meetings with the prime minister which we are trying to fix. Right now, I will not be able to tell you about any specific meeting, whether the meeting has been fixed or not. We are looking from all angles as to how much time we have and with whom we can hold meetings. We will keep updating you about the meetings."

PM's first stop will be in Wilmington, Delaware, which is the hometown of President Joe Biden. That is also the venue of this sixth Quad summit.

From Wilmington, the PM will travel to New York, to attend the Summit of the Future. Misri said, "He (PM Modi) will also have a number of engagements throughout these three days. On September 21, there will be a Quad summit; the bilateral meetings on the sidelines of the Quad summit. A special event on the sidelines of Quad summit will b e Cancer Moonshot event. On September 22, the PM will have an interaction with the Indian diaspora. This is being organised by the community in Long Island, New York."

The foreign secretary said PM Modi will engage with several tech CEOs during his three-day visit.