Donald Trump, the Republican presidential candidate and former US President, announced he would meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi next week. PM Modi is set to visit the US for a summit hosted by President Joe Biden with leaders from India, Australia, and Japan on September 21. Despite calling India a “very big abuser” of trade ties with the US during a campaign event, Trump praised Modi as “fantastic.”

Trump and Modi have historically enjoyed warm relations. In 2020, Modi hosted a grand rally for Trump in India, coinciding with the opening of the world’s largest cricket stadium. The two leaders had also praised each other at the “Howdy Modi!” event in Texas in 2019, attended by over 50,000 people.

Meanwhile, India and the US reviewed their strategic cooperation across key areas, including defense, technology, clean energy, and maritime awareness, during a 2+2 inter-sessional meeting in Delhi. This meeting sets the stage for further advancing the India-US Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership ahead of the next 2+2 ministerial dialogue.