Paul Ryan, Speaker of the US House of Representatives, has invited Prime Minister Narendra Modi to address a joint meeting of the US Congress on June 8 when he is expected to visit Washington for a bilateral summit with President Barack Obama.
Ryan, who had recently been approached by top lawmakers of both parties on this score, told reporters on Thursday that he has extended the invitation to the Prime Minister, terming it “a special opportunity to hear from the elected leader of the world’s most populous democracy”.
Describing the US-India friendship as a “pillar of stability” in an important region of the world, Ryan said in a statement: “This is a special opportunity to deepen our ties to India.”
“This address presents a special opportunity to hear from the elected leader of the world’s most populous democracy on how our two nations can work together to promote our shared values and to increase prosperity,” the Speaker said.
The Modi address would also be the first joint meeting of US Congress with Ryan at the helm. The Republican from Wisconsin became House Speaker last October. Modi would be the fifth Indian Prime Minister to address the US Congress.
The Speaker’s disclosure of his invitation came even as Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar held discussions here with top officials of the Obama administration on a host of bilateral issues.
Interestingly, the US and Indian Governments were still to make an official announcement on the Prime Minister’s visit, the first authentic word on which came early last week when four top lawmakers wrote to the Speaker, mentioning June 7-8 as the expected dates of the visit.
After Jaishankar’s meeting with US National Security Advisor Susan Rice on Wednesday, a White House statement said the two top officials “affirmed their commitment to deepening bilateral cooperation on climate change, trade, and defence”.
“They also discussed critical follow-on to the Paris Agreement, progress in our civil-nuclear cooperation, our ongoing support for India’s membership in the multilateral export control regimes, next steps in the Global Health Security Agenda, and opportunities for expanded security and counterterrorism cooperation,” said the statement issued by National Security Council spokesperson Ned Price.
Jaishankar was expected to hold a meeting with Deputy Secretary of State Anthony Blinker at the State Department on Thursday.