Manmohan winds up U.S. visit; leaves for Port of Spain

November 26, 2009 07:49 pm | Updated November 17, 2021 10:47 am IST - Washington

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his wife Gursharan Kaur with U.S. President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama at the North Portico of the White House in Washington on Tuesday. The Prime Minister wounded up his U.S tour today and left for Port of Spain.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his wife Gursharan Kaur with U.S. President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama at the North Portico of the White House in Washington on Tuesday. The Prime Minister wounded up his U.S tour today and left for Port of Spain.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Thursday wound up his four-day State visit here, first by a foreign leader under the 10-month-old Obama Administration, during which the two countries decided to transform their ties into “one of the defining” relationships of the 21st century.

Dr. Singh was given a warm send-off in the form of a 19-gun salute and guard of honour amid a drizzle at the Andrews Air Force base as he left for Port of Spain in Trinidad and Tobago, where he will attend the two-day Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) beginning on Friday.

India and the U.S. signed MoUs in counter-terrorism and five other pacts during the visit that marked the recognition of the special status accorded to India by President Barack Obama, who shares a special rapport with Dr. Singh.

Dr. Singh held talks with Mr. Obama on the entire gamut of bilateral relations, situation in the region and global challenges like terrorism, climate change and economic crisis.

“I am satisfied with the visit,” Dr. Singh said hours before wrapping up the trip and travelling to Port of Spain.

One of the key highlights of the visit was the State banquet hosted by Mr. Obama at the White House for Dr. Singh and his wife Gursharan Kaur, a gala event to which enormous colour was added by a cultural programme and special Indian cuisine.

The visit received immense attention in the American media, which commented on the rising influence and leadership of India.

Describing his tour as very productive, Dr. Singh said “I am confident that we cannot only continue but also strengthen the momentum of our relations built up in the last few years.”

He said Mr. Obama recognised the important role India-U.S. relations can play in meeting the global challenges of the 21st century.

“We agreed that there is a historic opportunity for India and the United States to work together for world peace and stability on the basis of our shared values, consensus and cooperation,” he said.

“We discussed several ideas on how we can work together to accelerate global economic recovery and put it on a more sustainable and balanced path in the future,” Dr. Singh said.

Explaining the reason for inviting Dr. Singh as his State guest, Mr. Obama said it “reflects our admiration for the prime minister’s leadership, the deep bonds between the peoples of the United States and India, and the historic opportunity we have to strengthen and broaden the partnership between our nations.”

He noted that India today is a rising and responsible global power whose leadership in Asia is expanding prosperity and security across the region.

“The United States welcomes and encourages India’s leadership role in helping to shape the rise of a stable, peaceful and prosperous Asia,” he said.

0 / 0
Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.