India, US working on early visit of PM to Washington

New Delhi: India is working with the US for an “early” visit to Washington by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to deepen the bilateral comprehensive global strategic partnership, the external affairs ministry said on Friday.

After a phone call with Modi this week, US President Donald Trump said the Indian leader is likely to visit the White House in February. This will be Modi’s first bilateral visit to the US after Trump became president for a second term.

Confirming discussions between the two sides for the proposed visit, external affairs ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal did not mention a timeframe for the trip.

“Prime Minister Modi and President Trump had a telephone conversation recently. The two sides are working on an early visit of the PM to the US to further deepen India-US comprehensive global strategic partnership,” Jaiswal told a regular media briefing in response to a question.

“Specific dates for the visit would be announced at the appropriate time.”

In their phone conversation on January 27, Modi and Trump spoke about working towards a “trusted” partnership with the focus on boosting cooperation in trade, energy and defence.

Both sides were initially looking at the window between February 12 and 14 for Modi’s visit but a final call is yet to be made, people familiar with the matter said on condition of anonymity.

Modi is set to travel to France to attend the Artificial Intelligence Action summit during February 10-11. Trump has been invited to the summit, though his participation is yet to be confirmed.

If Modi’s trip to the US happens in February, he will be among few leaders to travel to Washington for a bilateral visit within weeks of Trump coming to power for the second term.

As in many countries, there have been concerns in India over Trump’s approach towards immigration and tariffs. He has talked about slapping “100% tariffs” on the Brics bloc that includes India.

Jaiswal said India is firmly opposed to illegal migration, especially as it is linked to organised crime.

“As part of India-US cooperation on migration and mobility, both sides are engaged in a process to deter illegal migration, while creating more avenues for legal migration from India to the US,” he said.

Jaiswal said India is keen to continue this cooperation. “At the same time, the government of India would need to do the required verification, including nationality, of the concerned individuals, before they are deported to India,” he said.

“Any talk of numbers at this stage is premature. But I do want to emphasise that cooperation between India and the US is strong and effective in this domain. This will be evident in times to come.”