The Prime Minister (PM) of India Mr Narendra Modi visited United States (US) from September 21-27, 2019. Following are the highlights of his visit:
PM in Houston
Arrival
PM Modi arrived at the George Bush International Airport in Houston, US on September 21, 2019.
CEO round-table meet 2019 (September 21, 2019)
In the CEO (Chief Executive Officers) round-table meet 2019 held at Hotel Post Oak in Houston, PM interacted with the CEOs from the US oil and gas sectors. The meet focussed on working together for energy security and expanding mutual investment opportunities between India and the United States.
- Participants: CEOs of 17 global energy companies participated and they have a combined net worth of $1 trillion with a presence in 150 countries.
- MoU: A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between US natural gas company Tellurian Inc. and Petronet LNG Limited (PLL) of India was signed. PLL will invest $2.5 billion in Tellurian’s proposed Driftwood LNG (Liquefied natural gas) export terminal, in exchange for the rights to 5 million metric tons of LNG per year over 40 years. The transaction agreements will be finalised by March 31, 2020.
“Howdy, Modi” Event (September 22, 2019)
PM Modi attended the “Howdy, Modi” event at NRG stadium in Houston, Texas along with the US President Donald J Trump. He addressed the Indian community over fifty thousand and extended an invitation to President Trump and his family to visit India.
- The term “howdy” is a commonly used informal and friendly greeting in Texas and other southwestern states of the US which means “How do you do?”
- Mayor of Houston Sylvester Turner presented the ‘Key to Houston’ to Prime Minister Narendra Modi as a mark of respect, solidarity and long standing India-Houston relationship.
Inaugurations/Meetings
- PM inaugurated Eternal Gandhi Museum in Houston.
- He also inaugurated the Gujarati Samaj Houston Event Centre along with Shri Siddhi Vinayak Temple in Houston.
- PM met the Sikh community, a delegation of Kashmiri Pandits and the members of the Dawoodi Bohra community in Houston, Texas.
P.M in New York
74th UN Climate Action Summit (September 23, 2019)
PM addressed the 74th Edition of United Nations (UN) Climate Action Summit 2019 in New York, United States which was held under the theme “Climate Action Summit 2019: A Race We Can Win. A Race We Must Win”. Click here to read the detailed article about the 74th Edition of United Nations (UN) Climate Action Summit 2019.
Leaders’ Dialogue on Strategic Responses to Terrorist and Violent Extremist Narratives
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi attended the Leaders’ Dialogue on Strategic Responses to Terrorist and Violent Extremist Narratives at the UN headquarters, New York.
- It was jointly hosted by the King of Jordan Abdullah II, President of France Emmanuel Macron , Prime Minister of New Zealand Jacinda Ardern and the UN Secretary General António Guterres.
India-Pacific Islands Leaders’ Meeting (September 24, 2019)
The India-Pacific Islands Developing States (PSIDS) Leaders’ Meeting was held on September 24, 2019 in New York on the sidelines of the 74th UNGA. Prime Minister Narendra Modi met the leaders of the Pacific Island countries.
- It was the first time the PM met leaders of the PSIDS in a plurilateral format.
- He invited leaders of the PSIDS to join the Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI).
- Grant: PM announced allocation of USD 12 million grant (USD 1 million to each PSIDS) towards implementation of high impact developmental projects in the area of their choice. A concessional Line of Credit (LoC) of USD 150 Million which can be availed by the PSIDS for undertaking solar, renewable energy and climate related projects based on each country’s requirement was announced.
- PM Modi offered to organise a Jaipur Foot Artificial Limb Fitment Camp in a Pacific regional hub under the “India for Humanity” programme and announced a Distinguished Visitors Programme under which eminent persons from these countries can visit India.
- 3rd FIPIC Summit: He extended an invitation to all the leaders for the 3rd Forum for India-Pacific Island Cooperation (FIPIC) Summit to be held in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea in first half of 2020.
- Participants: The meeting was attended by the Heads of delegation of Fiji, Republic of Kiribati, Republic of the Marshall Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Republic of Nauru, Republic of Palau, Independent State of Papua New Guinea, The Independent State of Samoa, Solomon Islands, Kingdom of Tonga, Tuvalu and Republic of Vanuatu.
Inauguration of Gandhi Solar Park and Gandhi Peace Garden
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi, along with UN chief Antonio Guterres and other world leaders, inaugurated the 50-kilowatt Gandhi Solar Park at the UN Headquarters, New York and Gandhi Peace Garden at State University of New York College at Old Westbury. Gandhi Solar Park is funded by India at a cost of 1 million dollars.
- The special commemorative event ‘Leadership Matters: Relevance of Gandhi in the Contemporary World’ was hosted by Modi to mark Gandhi’s 150th birth anniversary at the Economic and Social Council Chamber (ECOSOC) at UN headquarters in New York.
- A special UN Postage stamp on Gandhi’s 150 years brought out by the UN Postal Administration was also released.
- India gifted solar panels have been installed on the roof of the UN Headquarters, one panel each for every 193 UN member states.
- The Gandhi Solar Park is a first of its kind symbolic Indian effort at the UN that highlights India’s willingness to go beyond the talk on climate change and climate action.
- The ‘Gandhi Peace Garden’ is an innovative initiative under which the Consulate General of India in New York, Long Island-based NGO (Non Governmental Organization) Shanti Fund and the State University of New York – Old Westbury have entered into an agreement to plant 150 trees.
Global Goalkeeper Award 2019
PM Modi received the Global Goalkeeper Award 2019 at Lincoln Centre by Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation for Swachh Bharat Abhiyan (SBA).
3rd Edition of Bloomberg Business Forum (September 25, 2019)
PM addressed the 3rd Edition of Bloomberg Global Business Forum for 2019 which was held under the theme “Restoring Global Stability” in New York and urged the global investors and businesses to invest in India.
- He also interacted with philanthropist and Bloomberg CEO Michael Bloomberg.
- In the Bloomberg National Brand Tracker 2018 survey, India was the top performing Asian economy in attracting global investment. In 7 out of 10 indicators of this report i.e. political stability, currency stability, high quality products, anti-corruption, low cost of production, strategic location and respect for IPRs (Intellectual Property Rights), India has been ranked at the top position.
Investment round-table meeting with PM
An investment round-table meeting with the PM was organised by the Government of India and Invest India with the CEOs of 42 companies from across 20 sectors. The agenda of the meeting was to bolster business, trade and investment ties between India and the US.
- The companies that participated in the roundtable had a combined net worth of US$ 16.4 trillion, of which their net worth in India is US$ 50 billion.
- The DPIIT and Invest India also organized a session in which Union Minister for Commerce and Industry, Mr Piyush Goyal, and senior officials from the Department of Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) and Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) had participated.
- PM interacted with the leading American CEOs.
India- CARICOM Leaders Meeting 2019
PM Modi co-chaired a India- CARICOM Leaders Meeting 2019 with the member states of the Caribbean Community and Common Market (CARICOM) on the margins of the UNGA meeting. Hon’ble Allen Chastenet, Prime Minister of St Lucia and current Chairman of CARICOM co-chaired the meeting. CARICOM is a group of 20 developing countries in the Caribbean (15 member states and five associate members).
- It was the first-ever meeting of PM Modi with CARICOM leaders and he invited them to join the International Solar Alliance (ISA) and the Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure.
- Grant: PM Modi announced a USD 14 million grant for community development projects in the CARICOM and another 150 million Line of Credit for solar, renewable energy and climate- change related projects.
- Announcement was made to set up of the Regional Center for Excellence in Information Technology in Georgetown, Guyana and the Regional Vocational Training Center in Belize by upgrading the existing India-funded centers in these countries.
- It was decided to set up a Joint Task Force to expeditiously look into possible areas of cooperation and identify the way forward.
- Participants: Hon’ble Heads of Governments of Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Dominica, Jamaica, St. Kitts and Nevis, St Lucia, St Vincent and the Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago, Vice President of Suriname, and Foreign Ministers of Bahamas, Belize, Grenada, Haiti and Guyana participated in the meeting.
Bilateral meetings (September 26, 2019)
PM Modi held bilateral meetings with different heads of nations.
- He met Prime Minister of New Zealand (NZ) Ms. Jacinda Ardern. She informed Modi about their New strategic paper “India 2022- Investing in the relationship”, which is a continuation of the NZ Inc. India Strategy 2011.
- He met President of the Republic of Estonia Ms Kersti Kaljulaid and discussed steps to deepen bilateral cooperation in the domain of e-Governance, Cyber security and Innovation.
- He met the President of Islamic Republic of Iran Dr. Hassan Rouhani. It was agreed to mark the 70th Anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between countries in 2020.
- He met President of the Republic of Cyprus Mr. Nicos Anastasiades, Prime Minister of Bangladesh Sheikh Hasina, Prime Minister of Bhutan Dr. Lotay Tshering, Prime Minister of the Hellenic Republic (Greece) Mr. Kyriakos Mitsotakis, Prime Minister of Armenia Mr Nikol Pashinyan, US President Donald Trump and Prime Minister of Belgium Mr. Charles Michel.
PM addressed the 74th session of UNGA (September 27, 2019)
PM Modi addressed the 74th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York. He mentioned the targets and other plans formulated by Indian government which are to be achieved in the next 5 years. He conveyed that the entire world is celebrating the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi.
About USA:
♦ Capital: Washington, DC
♦ Currency: US Dollar