Donald Trump to meet Narendra Modi next week during Indian Prime Minister's US visit
US presidential candidate Donald Trump has said that he will meet with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi next week. The Indian PM is scheduled to visit the United States from September 21 to 23. The Republican candidate revealed his upcoming meeting with PM Modi at a campaign rally in Flint, Michigan, while he was speaking about US trade with India.
Ties between Trump and Modi
During his time in office, the then-President Trump had maintained close personal ties with Modi, even though he was critical about the India-US trade deficit. In 2019, during his visit to the US, Modi attended a gathering of around 50,000 people along with Trump, who was seeking re-election in 2020.
Why Trump needs Indian-American support
With Indian-origin Kamala Harris on his ballot in November, Trump is likely to use the influence Modi has on Indian Americans to turn some of them in his favour. A July poll had suggested that the then-Democratic candidate Joe Biden had lost the support of Indian-American voters by as much as 19 percent. This is likely to have changed with Harris replacing him as the Democratic candidate.
Can Indian-Americans swing US Presidential election?
While Indian Americans live primarily in Democratic bastions like New York, California, Illinois, and Texas (a Republican stronghold), in some of the key battleground states like Michigan, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Georgia, and North Carolina, they can be the margin of victory in a closely contested race.
Modi to attend Quad Summit
According to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), during his visit to the US, Modi will also attend the Quad Summit, hosted by US President Joe Biden for the leaders from Australia, India, and Japan on September 21 in Delaware, Biden's hometown. The summit holds significance as Biden is not running for a second term in office, and when India hosts the next Quad summit in 2025, the US will have a new president.
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