Delhi: It was a warm welcome for Prime Minister Narendra Modi when he reached White House on Monday afternoon ahead of his summit-level talks with US President Donald Trump.
The US president and First Lady Melania Trump warmly welcomed Modi at the steps of the White House and they were seen exchanging pleasantries and warm smiles before going inside the White House.
As the two leaders sat for the meeting, Modi expressed gratitude to Trump and the First Lady for the warm welcome extended to him.
Modi called the "immense warmth" by the White House as an honour for 125 crore Indians.
"The way I have been welcomed by the President and the First Lady is the honour for 125 crore Indians," he said.
"I remember very well when he (Trump) was not even the President and he visited India in 2014 and when media asked him about me, he was full of very warm remarks and observations about me. I am still very grateful," Modi said before his meeting with President Trump.
The prime minister said Trump has been paying attention to India's growth march and economic progress. He recalled that Trump had visited India in 2014 before he became the President and had made nice comments.
The tone for the first summit meeting was set by the US State Department which declared Syed Salahuddin, chief of Kashmiri militant group Hizbul Mujahideen, as a 'global terrorist', just a few hours earlier. The State Department action sent out a strong message against the terrorism emanating from Pakistan which is hurting India.
Ahead of the meeting, Modi said the logic of the Indo-US strategic ties is "incontrovertible" and the two countries have an overriding interest in securing the world from terrorism, radical ideologies and non-traditional security threats.
(With inputs from agencies)
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