In a speech interrupted by cheers and at least eight standing ovations, Modi said deeper US-Indian security cooperation should isolate anyone who harbours, supports or sponsors terrorists.
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Modi had visited Switzerland, another key member of the NSG, before travelling to the United States, and the European country – known to have strong proliferation concerns – had announced its support to India’s candidature for the atomic trading club.
He and US President Barack Obama held bilateral talks following which a number of agreements signed, including one on US firm Westinghouse building six nuclear power plants in India.
“The US was first curious about India but now our shared values have led us to think together about what we can do for the world”, he said at a reception organised after his address to a joint sitting of the US Congress.
He also praised Congress for “refusing to reward” those who preach and practice terrorism.
He was welcomed by the Indian community as he visited the city.
“The growing relationship between us and India, I think, will be a good check and balance to China”, said Republican Senator Lindsey Graham of SC.
US lawmakers say it’s still too hard for Americans to invest in India, even with some easing of restrictions under Modi.
It’s a friendship that will nearly certainly be on display when Modi arrives Tuesday at the White House for his seventh meeting with the US president. That agreement had seemed to signal the end of three decades of Cold War suspicions, when the US was more focused on ties with India’s archrival, Pakistan, and many in Washington believed India was far too friendly with the Soviet Union. The U.S. has also become a major supplier of military hardware to India.
“My parents emigrated from India to the United States in 1978, so it’s really, really special for me to see Modi come to Congress”, said Antani.
But the overall response from lawmakers of both parties was positive. The U.S. State Department’s 2015 Trafficking in Persons report found that India’s main trafficking problem is forced labor. He said his nation’s 1.25 billion people made India an “ideal partner” for U.S businesses.
Emphasising that terrorism must be delegitimised, he said, “The need of the hour is for us to deepen our security cooperation”. Obama first voiced support for Indian membership in 2010 and reaffirmed it Tuesday, but it appears no closer to happening because of resistance from other council permanent members.
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Mexico’s Foreign Minister Claudia Ruiz Massieu was present at the airport to receive the Prime Minister. India, the world’s third-largest carbon emitter among nations, said it would strive to formally join a global climate deal this year – as the USA and China have said they will do – but it gave no ironclad commitment.
