United States President Joe Biden came to India for the G20 Summit and held substantial discussions with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. They both decided on ways to strengthen the Indo-US partnership and Biden thanked Modi for his leadership and hosting the G20 Summit in New Delhi.

After New Delhi, Biden went to Vietnam where he told reporters here in the Vietnamese capital that he also raised the importance of respecting human rights with Prime Minister Modi.

In India, Biden was not allowed to hold a press conference so he went to Vietnam and raised his concerns.

Biden held wide-rangin talks with Modi when he was India and they vowed to "deepen and diversify" the bilateral major defence partnership while welcoming forward movement in India's procurement of 31 drones and joint development of jet engines.

"I want to once again thank Prime Minister Modi for his leadership and his hospitality and hosting the G20. He and I have had substantial discussions about how we're going to continue to strengthen the partnership between India and the US building on the Prime Minister's visit to the White House last June,” Biden said during a press conference here.

"As I always do, I raised the importance of respecting human rights and the vital role the civil society and a free press have in building a strong and prosperous country with Modi,” he said.

"This was an important moment for the United States to demonstrate our global leadership and our commitment to solving the challenges that matter most to people around the world. Investing in inclusive growth and sustainable development, addressing the climate crisis, strengthening food security and education, advancing global health and health security,” he said.

Responding to questions, President Biden said his goal is to provide stability around the world by building America's ties with Vietnam and other Asian countries as he insisted that he is not trying to start a "cold war" with China.

"It's not about containing China. It's about having a stable base," said Biden, who is here as Vietnam was elevating the United States to comprehensive strategic partner.

Source: Hindustan Times