WASHINGTON: India’s leader Na­r­e­ndra Modi arrived in the US for his first meeting on Monday with President Donald Trump, seeking to build on growing ties and move beyond disagreements over climate change.

Relations between the world’s two largest democracies warmed under Trump’s predecessor Barack Obama as India sought greater foreign investment and trade ties with Western nations. Prime Minister Narendra Modi vowed to work closely with the Trump administration, but obstacles soon emerged on issues such as trade and visas for Indians wanting to work in the United States.

Then Trump accused India of seeking to profit from the Paris climate accord as he announced he was pulling out of the deal this month — drawing sharp denials from New Delhi. Officials were eager to downplay expectations of the visit, describing it as “no frills” — in contrast to Modi’s first US visit in 2014, when he basked in a rock star welcome at the Madison Square Garden arena in New York and addressed the United Nations.

Published in Dawn, June 26th, 2017