United States President Joe Biden is looking forward to work with India as he “respects and values” the “long, bipartisan, successful” relationship between leaders of both the countries, a White House spokesperson said on Thursday.
Ever since Biden’s victory was confirmed in Presidential elections held in November 2020, the former US vice president has at least once, called up Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Both the leaders could talk again soon as the newly appointed American President looks to repair diplomatic relations with the countries after former President Trump’s withdrawal policies.
Biden has already started dialling up leaders of America-friendly countries with Canada Prime Minister Justin Trudeau being the first one to receive the call.
“President Biden, who of course has visited India many times, respects and values the long, bipartisan, successful relationship between leaders in India and the United States. He looks forward to a continuation of that,” Jen Psaki, the White House press secretary, said in response to a question at the daily news briefing.
To emphasis further on the proof that Biden duly supports the US-India relationships, Psaki brought up Vice-President Kamala Harris’ name. “Obviously, he selected -- and yesterday, she was sworn in -- the first Indian American to serve as President or Vice President, certainly a historic moment for all of us in this country, but a further, you know, cementing of the importance of our relationship.”
Harris’s mother, Shyamala Gopalan Harris, came to the US from Chennai, India and her father, Donald Harris, from Jamaica.
Joe Biden and Narendra Modi go back further than the November call. In 2014, Biden, who was vice-president then, had hosted a lunch for the Indian prime minister at the state department. Modi, who was observing Navratri fasts at the time, skipped the meal part of the event, as he had at the dinner hosted for him and his team by President Barack Obama at the White House.
“My warmest congratulations to Joe Biden on his assumption of office as the President of the United States of America. I look forward to working with him to strengthen India-US strategic partnership,” PM Modi tweeted on Thursday after the confirmation of Joe Biden as the 46th President of the United States.
