PM Modi’s hectic agenda during the US visit; Talks to focus on Indo-Pacific, maritime security and vaccines

The UNGA this year is returning to in-person format after being held virtually last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Stage is getting set for the first ever in-person QUAD summit hosted by the US President Joe Biden in Washington DC on September 24, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will attend the meeting along with the Prime Ministers of Japan and Australia.

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This will be the first in person meeting of Prime Minister Modi with President Biden since the new administration took charge in January in the US. The outcome of the in-person Leaders Meeting is much anticipated, as it is taking place at a time when new developments have taken place from the time the Leaders Summit was announced.

Last week during the weekly briefing the official spokesperson Arindam Bagchi of the Ministry of External Affairs had said, “On Sept 24, Prime Minister Modi will participate in the first in-person Quad leaders’ summit in Washington. And while he is there, there will be bilateral meetings scheduled with the US President Joe Biden and other QUAD leaders too.”

Prime Minister Modi and US President Joe Biden have spoken three times through telephone calls also both have been present virtually on two occasions – in April during the Climate Change meet which was called by the US and earlier during the first ever virtual QUAD member countries meeting in March.

As has been reported by the Financial Express Online earlier, the Prime Minister will then travel to New York and on Saturday he will address the UN General Assembly. This is his fourth address at the UNGA since 2014. In 2020, his address was virtually due to the global lockdown.

QUAD Summit

The focus of the QUAD summit is expected to be on Indo-Pacific, Maritime Domain Awareness, emerging technologies, the recent formation of AUKUS (Trilateral Military Alliance of the US, the UK and Australia), QUAD Vaccines Initiative and the ongoing situation in Afghanistan.

As has been reported earlier, the leaders of the QUAD will review the progress made since the first virtual summit in March, and also review the progress made in the QUAD Vaccine Initiative which has been announced earlier this year. Focus is also going to be on connectivity and cyber security, humanitarian assistance.

Also, the leaders are going to talk about promoting a free and open Indo-Pacific and maritime security and emerging technologies.

Agenda in Washington DC

On Sept 23, 2021, bilateral meetings with the Prime Minister of Australia Scott Morrison and Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga are on the agenda. Later in the day, a meeting with the Vice President Kamala Harris, top CEOs of US Companies including Boeing, Lockheed Martin, General Atomics, Apple, and other businesses are in the process of being confirmed.

On day two of his visit (Sept 24, 2021) a bilateral meeting with the US President Joe Biden has been confirmed followed by the first in-person QUAD Leaders summit.

Several top officials from the Biden administration have visited India since January this year. The first visit was by the US Secretary of Defense Lloyd J Austin, followed by the Secretary of State Antony J Blinken. Also, John Kerry, the US climate envoy has made two visits- the last being last week to New Delhi. Top military officials have also visited India.

The UNGA this year is returning to in-person format after being held virtually last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

What to expect at the 76th session of UNGA?

The return of Taliban after the withdrawal of the US troops, ongoing political crisis in Afghanistan, crisis in Myanmar, missile tests by North Korea, and Climate Change. The new Trilateral Alliance led by the US AUKUS under which the US is going to help Australia in building nuclear-powered submarines is also going to be a subject of discussion.

There will be a meeting on COVID crisis to be hosted by the US President and the focus is expected to be on vaccinating world population, to beat the global pandemic by