PM Modi’s US Visit Weeks into the Office

Trump has been signing orders and unraveling new bolts out of the blue, which has sent shockwaves throughout the globe. His recent tariff agenda, controversial Gaza plan, and deportation of illegal migrants have kept the US in the top headlines. Amidst the heightened tension, the visit by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is crucial for pinpointing India’s stand on US current policies, with Trump 2.0 onboard. During the first tenure of his presidency, Trump and Modi shared a warm friendship bond and continuously exchanged greetings and appraisals on social media and public forums. Modi called Trump “his dear friend,” whereas Trump went on to address Modi as the “nicest human.”. The two prominent global leaders have also held joint rallies; Modi’s visit to the US during the first presidential tenure of Trump and the Howdy Modi event were a great success. India had also welcomed Trump warmly during his visit.Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is on his two-day visit to the US, kicked off his series of bilateral interactions with the US government. He met US Director of National Intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard, who is an Indian-origin American, sworn into office last week. This is India’s first bilateral talk with the US after Trump assumed his presidency. While in talks with Tulsi, Modi discussed various aspects of cooperation between the two nations; the talk also focused on enhanced cooperation in intelligence to counter terrorism and other emerging threats. As Modi is all set to meet Trump, the two leaders will map US-India strategic cooperations; tariff talks are set on the tables of the agenda. Modi would want to return with a positive bargain for India amidst the traffic implication uncertainty as India has its balance of payment at stake. The US is India’s largest export destination and ranks among its top ten trade partners in several sectors, including technology, trade, defense, and the energy sector. The imposition of a tariff of 25% will severely affect India’s exports and ultimately send shockwaves to the Indian economy. With the current continuous outflow of foreign portfolio investment, the Indian rupee is already weakening, and the added tariff uncertainty will have severe negative implications for the economy. Bringing Trump on the same page with India won’t be an easy nut to crack, as Trump has labeled India as the “tariff king” and lashed out at various trade allegations. In response, India has shown willingness to buy more American oil while lowering its own tariff on American goods. Currently India imposes a 14% tariff on US goods; however, it has dropped tariffs on several US goods, including those on almonds, apples, chickpeas, walnuts, and lentils.Congress has also commented on Modi’s visit to the US and has challenged him to talk about the cause of the inhumane deportation of Indian illegal immigrants, who were chained and deported by military aircraft. “I hope the meeting between PM Modi and US President Donald Trump will boost the bilateral relationship of the US and India. The meeting between the chiefs of the two countries will give solutions to the issues faced by the people in different parts of the globe, particularly the Ukraine-Russia War and the Israel-Gaza issue… I hope this meeting will give good solutions to all these issues,” GS Reddy said.True to life had a conversation with Professor Sanjay Kumar from JNU to gain insight into the significance of Modi’s US visit. Professor Sanjay said, “The visit is a testament to the growing importance of India-US bilateral relations. It will not only help India turn the tariff issue to its favor, but Modi will also win important bilateral trade cooperation for India. Talk with Tulsi, which centered around increased cooperation in the field of intel sharing to counter terrorism, will also strengthen India and US relations.”Although the two old friends will exchange initial hugs and warmth, the meeting is not going to be all smiles. The whole world awaits the outcome of the bilateral talks between the two strongest and most prominent world leaders.