New Delhi: US President-elect Joe Biden spoke with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday night in their first phone conversation since the results of the US election was declared earlier this month.
PM Modi congratulated Biden and his running mate Kamala Harris on their victory and reiterated New Delhi’s commitment to the Indo-US strategic partnership and discussed their “shared priorities and concerns”.
Taking to microblogging site Twitter, Modi wrote, “Spoke to US President-elect Joe Biden on phone to congratulate him. We reiterated our firm commitment to the Indo-US strategic partnership and discussed our shared priorities and concerns — Covid-19 pandemic, climate change, and cooperation in the Indo-Pacific Region.”
Spoke to US President-elect @JoeBiden on phone to congratulate him. We reiterated our firm commitment to the Indo-US strategic partnership and discussed our shared priorities and concerns – Covid-19 pandemic, climate change, and cooperation in the Indo-Pacific Region.
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) November 17, 2020
Further, PM Modi said Kamala Harris’ victory is a matter of great pride and ispiration for the Indian-American community.
“I also conveyed warm congratulations for VP-elect @KamalaHarris. Her success is a matter of great pride and inspiration for members of the vibrant Indian-American community, who are a tremendous source of strength for Indo-US relations,” the PM said in another tweet.
I also conveyed warm congratulations for VP-elect @KamalaHarris. Her success is a matter of great pride and inspiration for members of the vibrant Indian-American community, who are a tremendous source of strength for Indo-US relations.
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) November 17, 2020
While, the Biden-Harris Presidential Transition team in a press release informed that the president-elect thanked the prime minister for his congratulations and expressed his desire to strengthen and expand the US.-India strategic partnership alongside the first vice president of South Asian descent Kamala Harris.
“The president-elect noted that he looks forward to working closely with the prime minister on shared global challenges, including containing COVID-19 and defending against future health crises, tackling the threat of climate change, launching the global economic recovery, strengthening democracy at home and abroad, and maintaining a secure and prosperous Indo-Pacific region,” the statement read.
During the telephonic conversation, PM Modi warmly recalled his earlier interactions with Biden, including during his official visits to the United States in 2014 and in 2016.
Biden had chaired the Joint Session of the US Congress that was addressed by the Prime Minister during his 2016 visit.