New Delhi: US President Joe Biden will not be coming to India for the Republic Day celebrations as the chief guest in January next year, according to multiple reports. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had invited the US leader for the Republic Day celebrations, as part of New Delhi’s plans to host the Quad leaders’ summit.
Modi had invited Biden during their bilateral meeting on September 8 on the sidelines of the G20 Summit. US Ambassador to India Eric Garcetti at the time confirmed that PM Modi had indeed extended the invitation.
The Quad Summit is proposed to be held later in 2024 as the current dates do not work with all the Quad partners.
The reason behind Biden skipping the trip to India is not clear. According to reports, the frosty bilateral relations over Khalistani terrorist Pannun might be the reason for Biden’s reluctance to travel to New Delhi. encapsulates the current relationship between the two nations. The US Justice Department has claimed that an Indian man, identified as Nikhil Gupta, arrested by Czech authorities in June, was behind the plot to kill Pannun. Consequently, the department opened an investigation against him.
Some reports also suggest that the White House is expected to use the State of the Union address that US presidents usually deliver in January, as an excuse for missing the trip.
The last US president to visit India for the January 26 celebrations was Barack Obama who visited in 2015.
Speculations are rife that New Delhi might extend the chief guest invitation to Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida or Australian PM Anthony Albanese – the other two Quad partners, Wion reported.
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