Modi in US: Gets Obama’s NSG Backing, Meets Top CEOs on Day 2

Reports suggest India has become the 34th member to join the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR).
Shorbori Purkayastha
World
Updated:
President Barack Obama listens as Indian Prime Minister India Narendra Modi speaks to members of the media during their meeting in the Oval Office. (Photo: AP)
President Barack Obama listens as Indian Prime Minister India Narendra Modi speaks to members of the media during their meeting in the Oval Office. (Photo: AP)
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  • One Day 2, Prime Minster Narendra Modi met with top CEOs of companies.
  • A pact was signed to share terrorist screening information by the two countries.
  • The US supports India’s bid to join the Nuclear Suppliers Group.
  • The two nations welcomed preparatory work for six nuclear reactors in India
  • The leaders discussed the Paris Climate Change Agreement to decide how various countries can act swiftly to curb climate change.

India Has “Multiple Benefits” for the World

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said India is poised to contribute as the new engine of global growth and asserted that a larger Indian economy has “multiple benefits” for the world.

As a result, India has now emerged as the one of the fastest growing economies of the world and urged the American businesses to come and invest in India, set up efficient manufacturing units.

He added that the government has made India a destination which not only welcomes businesses but also it is easier to do business.

He assured the US corporate world to make its taxation system transparent. India, he said would continue to open up the defence sector.

We are exploring a simpler and transparent licensing system. The purchase of six nuclear reactors from Westinghouse which would mark a new era in the field nuclear energy in India.

Modi’s Meeting With Top Brass

The PM met with CEOs of top businesses in a round table conference on 8 June. The business leaders were met at the US-India Business Council in Washington DC.

Photo: Twitter@MEAIndia

PM Meets US Secretary for Defence

The US Secretary of Defence Ashton Carter met PM Modi at Blair House, Washington, D.C. The Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson, Vikas Swarup tweeted about the meeting.

Pact to Share Terrorist Screening Information Signed

A pact on sharing information about terrorist screening was signed, according to the External Affairs Ministry.

According to the Foreign Secretary, Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, terrorism was discussed in detail during the US-India conversation and talks about how to deepen the collaboration between the two countries against terrorism.

Human Rights Activists Demand Action

US President Barack Obama should press the PM of India to strengthen his country’s anti-trafficking laws and deliver justice to victims, human rights campaigners said on Tuesday.

India has the most slaves in the world with more than 18 million people trapped in debt bondage, forced into marriage, sold to brothels or born into servitude, according to the 2016 Global Slavery Index.

Obama and Modi Discuss Paris Climate Change Agreement

India has agreed to work toward joining the Paris Agreement on climate change this year, India and the United States said on Tuesday, giving a jolt of momentum to the international fight to curb global warming.

At a time of heightened tensions in Asia over China’s assertive pursuit of territory, the two countries also pledged to expand military cooperation and outlined principles for cooperation on cyber issues.

PresidentObama welcomed Indian Prime Minister Modi to the White House for their seventh meeting since Modi took office in 2014, underscoring the warm relationship between the two leaders and the world’s largest democracies. Modi is to address the US Congress on Wednesday.

We discussed how we can, as quickly as possible, bring the Paris Agreement into force.
Obama told reporters during talks in the Oval Office

India’s potential entrance into the agreement this year would help accelerate its enactment, perhaps years ahead of schedule. India is the world’s third largest greenhouse gas emitter after China and the United States.

Obama and Modi are both committed to fighting climate change, which is a legacy issue for Obama, who leaves office in January.

Six Nuclear Reactors on Their Way

US President Obama and Indian Prime Minister Modi on Tuesday welcomed the start of preparatory work for six nuclear reactors in India, a key step in closing the first deal stemming from a US-India civil nuclear accord struck more than a decade ago.

A joint US-India statement said India and the US Export-Import Bank were working to complete a financing package for the project, and that the Nuclear Power Corporation of India and Toshiba Corp’s Westinghouse Electric had confirmed engineering and site design work would begin immediately.

It said the companies would work toward finalising the contract by June 2017.

Speaking of his meeting with Modi, President Barack Obama said:

We discussed progress made on nuclear civil cooperation.

He also said that he has fond memories of the Republic Day celebrations from 2015, which he had participated in.

We discussed regional security issues, we wish to work together on cyber security. We are working shoulder to shoulder and we are proud. We will continue working together.

Modi extended his gratefulness towards Obama for supporting India’s entry to MTCR and NSG.

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US President Barack Obama and Narendra Modi greeting each other. (Photo Courtesy: Twitter/@PMOIndia)

India a Step Closer to NSG Membership

India has come a step closer to gaining entry to the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG). US President Barack Obama has been backing India’s bid to join the NSG.

India had applied to join the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), a 48-nation club that governs trade in commercial nuclear technology and was originally set up in response to India’s first atomic weapons test in 1974.

India’s has faced several roadblocks in its bid to gain membership into the NSG. China, a member of the NSG, has vehemently opposed India’s entry and instead backed India’s arch-rival, Pakistan’s membership.

India has become the 34th member to join the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR).

The Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) is an informal and voluntary partnership among 35 countries to prevent the proliferation of missile and unmanned aerial vehicle technology.

US President Barack Obama has strongly backed India’s membership into the MTCR and three other export control regimes – Australia Group, Nuclear Suppliers Group and the Wassenaar Arrangement.

Narendra Modi is greeted by Peter A Selfridge, United States Chief of Protocol, outside the West Wing of the White House in Washington. (Photo: AP)

This is Prime Minister Modi’s fourth visit to the United States of America. The aim the visit is to strengthen Indo-American ties.

The seventh Modi-Obama meeting will highlight the deepening of the US-India relationship in key areas since the President’s visit to New Delhi in January 2015, the White House said.

The President looks forward to discussing progress made on our climate change and clean energy partnership, security and defence cooperation, and economic growth priorities.
White House Statement

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Published: 07 Jun 2016,08:48 PM IST

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