A day after he wrote to Home Speaker Kevin McCarthy urging him to ask Prime Minister Narendra Modi to deal with a joint assembly of the US (US) Congress, Congressman Ro Khanna has mentioned that he’s “very assured” that the Speaker will lengthen an invitation to PM Modi.
As co-chairs of the bipartisan Congressional caucus on India and Indian-Individuals, Khanna, a Democrat from California, and Michael Waltz, a Republican from Florida, met McCarthy on Wednesday to debate the invitation.
After the assembly, Khanna instructed HT, “We had a really constructive dialogue with the Speaker and, based mostly on the dialogue, I’m very assured that he’ll lengthen an invitation to the PM to deal with a joint session of the Congress.” Khanna added that McCarthy noticed India as a “vital ally” and the connection with India as among the many consequential for the US within the twenty first century.
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On the invitation of President Joe Biden, Modi is travelling to Washington DC on June 22 for a state go to. Biden will host him for bilateral talks in addition to a state dinner, making Modi solely the third Indian chief after President S Radhakrishnan in 1963 and PM Manmohan Singh in 2009 to obtain the honour.
On Tuesday, Khanna and Waltz, as co-chairs of the bipartisan India caucus, wrote a letter to the Speaker urging him to ask Modi. “As State Dinners have come to suggest the President’s utmost respect for visiting heads of state, granting a joint handle to Congress is a commensurate honor for the chief of the world’s largest democracy and maybe probably the most vital associate to countering China within the twenty first century.”
Modi had addressed the US Congress in 2016, the place he famously spoke about how the 2 nations have overcome the “hesitations of historical past”. If McCarthy invitations Modi, and if Modi accepts the invite, it’s going to make the PM amongst a handful of leaders who would have spoken to US Congress twice. Others who’ve obtained the honour have included Winston Churchill, Nelson Mandela, Yitzhak Rabin and Benjamin Netanyahu.
Of their letter to McCarthy, Khanna and Waltz identified that this was the seventy fifth anniversary of Indian independence and India-US relations and the inspiration of the partnership rested on a “shared dedication to democracy and the upholding of a rules-based worldwide system”.
“With mutual pursuits in selling world safety, stability, and financial prosperity by means of commerce, funding, and connectivity, the US and India have solid a deep bond,” the letter said. It additionally referred to latest conferences between Modi and Biden as having reaffirmed their “dedication” to a resilient worldwide order that “safeguards sovereignty, upholds democratic values, and promotes peace and prosperity for all”.
Khanna and Waltz mentioned that Quad had offered a platform to US and India, together with Japan and Australia, to debate “shared regional and world safety pursuits”. “The USA acknowledges and helps India’s emergence as a number one world energy and a significant associate in safeguarding the Indo-Pacific area as a spot of peace, stability, and rising prosperity.”
The caucus co-chairs additionally talked about the robust folks to folks ties between the 2 nations. “The 4 million-strong Indian American diaspora and vibrant academic exchanges between our nations exemplify the deep connection and potential for collaboration. Such ties are an amazing supply of power and function a strong basis for our strategic partnership.”
Primarily based on these causes, Khanna and Waltz mentioned they believed a joint handle by the PM to the Congress would supply an “invaluable alternative” for members on each side of the aisle to have interaction in constructive dialogue. “We firmly imagine that inviting Prime Minister Narendra Modi to ship a joint handle to Congress would additional strengthen the deep and enduring friendship between the US and India.”
Below Khanna and Waltz, the India caucus has witnessed a brand new power and dynamism. On the finish of April, the caucus hosted a one-day summit on the Hill to debate numerous elements of the bilateral relationship. They’ve additionally stepped up their engagement with Indian and diaspora interlocutors and the caucus leaders hope to go to India in some unspecified time in the future this 12 months.