Prime
Minister Narendra Modi said on Wednesday that his visit to the United States is
going to be aimed at strengthening the Indo-US Comprehensive Global Strategic
Partnership and consolidate ties with Australia and Japan. Prime Minister Modi
will be in the US from September 22 to 25. The Indian prime minister will
attend the first in-person Quad summit on Friday (September 24) and attend the
United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) session on Saturday (September 25).

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“During
my visit, I will review the India-US Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership
with President Biden and exchange views on regional and global issues of mutual
interest,” Modi said while adding that he is looking forward to meeting US
Vice-President Kamala Harris to explore “opportunities for cooperation between
our two nations particularly in the area of science and technology.”

The
Quad Leaders’ Summit will see participation of US President Joe Biden,
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison, Japanese Premier Yoshihide Suga and
Prime Minister Modi. The summit will take stock of the progress made on
priorities set in the virtual Quad Summit held in March this year. The focus of
the Quad leaders will be on securing the Indo-Pacific region.

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With
the Quad Summit taking place on the side-lines of UNGA, China is expected to
have a strong response. Addressing the UNGA, Chinese President Xi Jinping said
that disputes between countries need to be resolved through dialogue and
cooperation and called upon world leaders to avoid “confrontation and exclusion”.
Jinping’s comment came hours after US President Joe Biden said he does not
intend to start a new “Cold War”.

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“We
need to pursue dialogue and inclusiveness over confrontation and exclusion. We
need to build a new type of international relations based on mutual respect,
equity, justice, and win-win cooperation, and do the best we can to expand the convergence
of our interests and achieve the biggest synergy possible,” the Chinese premier
has said.

The
Quad Summit is expected to see a wide array of responses from countries across
the world. China has already made its disapproval of the Quad public.