US President Joe Biden commended Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s historic visit to Ukraine last month and his message of peace, as the two leaders held wide-ranging talks that figured pressing global challenges including the situation in the war-ravaged country.

The US President hosted Modi at his personal home in Wilmington, Delaware on Saturday afternoon hours after the prime minister arrived in the US on a three-day visit. Modi’s bilateral meeting with President Joe Biden in Wilmington was an emotional one, marking their final meeting in an official capacity as the American leader is not seeking reelection.  The US President hosted Modi at his personal residence in Wilmington, Delaware on Saturday and the two leaders held wide-ranging talks covering various key aspects of India-US ties.

At a media briefing, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri, while answering a question on defusing the Ukraine crisis, said “very important” conversations are underway with multiple people on all sides of the conflict. In the talks, Biden conveyed to the Indian prime minister that the US supports initiatives to reform global institutions to reflect India’s important voice, including permanent membership for New Delhi in a reformed UN Security Council, according to a joint fact-sheet on the meeting.

Though the Modi-Biden talks primarily focused on bilateral ties, the two leaders also touched upon key global challenges including the Russia-Ukraine conflict and the situation in the Indo-Pacific that has witnessed increasing Chinese muscle-flexing.

The fact-sheet said President Biden expressed his “immense appreciation” for India’s leading role on the world stage, particularly Modi’s leadership in the G-20 and in the Global South and his commitment to strengthen the Quad to ensure a free, open, and prosperous Indo-Pacific.

It said India is at the forefront of efforts to seek solutions to the most pressing challenges, from supporting the global response to the COVID-19 pandemic to addressing the devastating consequences of conflicts around the world.

“President Biden commended Prime Minister Modi for his historic visits to Poland and Ukraine, the first by an Indian prime minister in decades, and for his message of peace and ongoing humanitarian support for Ukraine, including its energy sector, and on the importance of international law, including the UN charter,” it said. It is understood that Modi briefed Biden on his visits to Moscow in July and to Kyiv last month.

Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri, when asked at a media briefing on the extent of discussion on the Russia-Ukraine conflict between the two leaders and whether the Indian side mentioned any kind of peace proposal, only said New Delhi is involved in a set of negotiations.

In their meeting, Modi and Biden reaffirmed their support for the freedom of navigation and the protection of commerce, including critical maritime routes in the Middle East where India will assume co-lead in 2025 of the Combined Task Force 150 to work with Combined Maritime Forces to secure sea lanes in the Arabian Sea, the document said.

The leaders voiced their view that a closer US-India partnership is vital to the success of efforts to build a cleaner, inclusive, more secure, and more prosperous future for the planet, it added.

Modi and Biden also deliberated on ways to further bolster India-US cooperation in areas of semiconductors, clean energy and defence.

In his meeting with Quad leaders both in multilateral and bilateral settings, Modi put forward India’s views and commitments for global growth, development, peace and security. Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri made these remarks at a special briefing in New York on Sunday.

Modi on Saturday had three separate bilateral meetings with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and US President Joe Biden along with the Quad Leadership Summit in Wilmington, Delaware.

Prime Minister Modi reached New York on Sunday after wrapping up the Quad Leaders’ meeting in Wilmington, hosted by President Biden. In a rare gesture, Biden hosted Modi for a bilateral meeting in his home, and the Quad summit was held at the Archmere Academy in Wilmington.