Modi-Biden summit has scripted a new chapter in the relationship between the two countries, which, perhaps, will have worldwide impact on the geo-politics. But the meeting between the two leaders has fallen short of forging any formal security alliance, writes Gopal Misra
It was a rare blending of the statecraft with the stagecraft, mastered by the two leaders, US President Joe Biden and his official guest, Indian PM Narendra Modi. They scripted a new chapter in the relationship of their countries, which, perhaps, will have worldwide impact on the geo-politics.
Modi’s three-day action packed programme between June21-24 could have out shadowed any blockbuster either in Bollywood or Hollywood with its meticulous details, each scene loaded with well thought out ideas and weighed that how much it would be impacting the audience across the continents, and indeed on the law makers at Capitol, where the Indian PM was the first chief executive of his country to address the Congress second time- a rare honour extended to a world leader. Thus, he joins the elite club of the leaders such as Nelson Mandela and Winston Churchill. Earlier, they had addressed this powerful bicameral legislature, Senate, the Upper House and the Lower House of Representatives, and on the chair were Vice-President Kamala Harris and Speaker Kevin McCarthy.
There were joint communiqué and other statements; but the most significant event, perhaps, was when Modi’s nearly hour-long address to the US Congress which evoked multiple standing ovations, applauses and cheers from American lawmakers. Amidst the thunderous applause and clapping, he received a rousing reception as he walked up to the podium to deliver his address. The grand House Chamber at the US Capitol also echoed with the chants of ‘Modi, Modi’ from members of the Indian community sitting there. Earlier, Modi had addressed a joint meeting of the US Congress for the first time in 2016, but it was different this time. During the past seven years, the two countries have successfully evolved common perception on many key issues influencing the earth.
Modi’s address before the Congess that “any hesitation in India-US relations belongs to the past, emphasizing that the two democracies are currently at a critical juncture and that he is visiting the country to speak about the “calling for the century.” It means that the present 21st. century is the era of progress and cooperation that the relationship between the two countries is being founded for the coming decades.
