Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Monday his visit to the US will be an opportunity to build upon the successes in collaboration between the two countries in President Donald Trump's first term.
In his departure statement ahead of his visit to France and the US, he said it will also help develop an agenda to further elevate and deepen India's partnership with the US, including in areas of technology, trade, defence, energy, and supply chain resilience.
Noting that it will be their first meeting since Trump's inauguration as president for a second term, Modi said, "We will work together for the mutual benefit of the people of our two countries and shape a better future for the world."
He said, "I look forward to meeting my friend, President Trump. I have a very warm recollection of working together in his first term in building a Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership between India and the US."
Modi will be visiting France from February 10 to February 12 before flying to the US from there on a two-day trip.
The Prime Minister said he is visiting France at the invitation of President Emmanuel Macron.
He looked forward to co-chairing the AI Action Summit, a gathering of the world leaders and global tech CEOs, where they will exchange views on collaborative approach to AI technology for innovation and larger public good in an inclusive, secure and trustworthy manner, he added.
Modi said, "The bilateral segment of my visit will provide an opportunity to review the progress on 2047 Horizon Roadmap for India-France strategic partnership along with my friend President Macron."
The two leaders will also travel to the historic French city of Marseille to inaugurate the first Indian consulate in France and also visit the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor project, in which India is a member of the consortium of partner countries, including France, to harness energy for the global good.
He added, "I will also pay tribute to the Indian soldiers who laid down their lives during World War I and II at the Mazargues War Cemetery."
Ahead of his bilateral meeting with Prime Minister Modi in France, President Emmanuel Macron has said the two countries have a "shared interest" focused on friendship.
In a video interview with India's Firstpost and French news network France24 in Paris, Macron shared his thoughts on artificial intelligence (AI) and its global impact, India-France ties, and his views on the US.
During the interaction, the French president highlighted India's strength in technology and education, a statement said.
"India is a training superpower -- one million engineers a year, more than the US and Europe combined," he was quoted as saying in the statement. "We have shared interest focused on friendship," the French president said.
In response to a query, he said, "We want to train our talent so that they can go abroad, but they should also be at home."
At the beginning of the interview, Macron greeted the people of India in Hindi, saying, 'Bharat ke logon ko mera namaste', and ended it by saying 'Bahut shukriya' (many thanks).
At a special briefing in New Delhi on February 7, India's Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri had shared the broad itinerary of the prime minister's visit to France.
Modi will attend a dinner hosted by Macron at the Élysée Palace in Paris on Monday, which is likely to be attended by a large number of CEOs from the tech domain along with other distinguished invitees to the summit.
On February 11, the prime minister will co-chair the AI Action Summit, along with Macron. He will also hold discussions in both restricted and delegation formats and address the India-France CEO's Forum, Misri told reporters.
