Committed to making US-India partnership among closest on earth: President Biden tells PM Modi in Japan

Tokyo, May 24

US President Joe Biden on Tuesday told Prime Minister Narendra Modi that he is committed to making America’s partnership with India among the closest on earth, saying there is so much that the two countries can and will do together.

The two leaders are in Japan for the second Quad leaders’ in-person summit.

President Biden, during a bilateral meeting with Prime Minister Modi after the Quad summit, praised India’s Covid vaccination efforts.

Biden said he was pleased that the two countries have reached an agreement for the US Development Finance Corporation to continue this important work in India, supporting vaccine production and clean energy initiatives.

“I am glad that we are renewing the Indo-US Vaccine Action Programme,” he said.

“There is so much that our countries can and will do together. I am committed to make the US-India partnership among the closest we have on earth,” Biden said.

On the issue of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the US President said the two leaders also discussed the ongoing effects of Russia’s brutal and non-justified invasion of Ukraine and the effect it has on the entire global world order.

“The US-India is going to continue consulting closely on how to mitigate these negative effects,” Biden said.

Earlier, PM Modi, US President Biden, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Australia’s newly-elected Prime Minister Anthony Albanese attended the second in-person meeting of Quad leaders here during which they exchanged views about developments in the Indo-Pacific region and global issues of mutual interest.

The Quad summit is taking place under the shadow of the Russia-Ukraine conflict.