PM Modi lands in New York to address UNGA; expected to speak on COVID, radicalisation

After completing the Washington DC leg of his US visit, conducting significant meetings with US President Joe Biden and Quad leaders, Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in New York to address the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) Session.

The Indian Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) tweeted informing the nation's "current membership of the UN Security Council lends even greater significance!" PM Modi will be speaking at the general debate of the 76th session of the UNGA at 6.30 pm today. 

Informing about the Indian Prime Minister's arrival to New York, the MEA tweeted: "Voicing the sentiments of the 1.3 billion people of India!"

PM Modi greets people at New York

After reaching New York, PM Modi was seen greeting people both in and outside the hotel.  

PM Modi likely to talk on COVID-19, radicalisation at UNGA

The theme of this year's UNGA session is "Building Resilience through hope to recover from COVID-19, rebuild sustainably, respond to the needs of the planet, respect the rights of people, and revitalise the United Nations" and Prime Minister Modi is likely to deliver an address on India's fight against the pandemic.

India's permanent representative to United Nations TS Tirumurti had earlier asserted that PM Modi's speech at UNGA is “one of the most awaited among the world leaders.”

"He has always addressed some of the core issues confronting the world, and those of importance and concern to us in India, including some of our achievements on the domestic front,” Tirumurti told in an interview. 

PM Modi's meeting with President Biden, Quad leaders

Meanwhile, two crucial meetings took place on Friday-- the first with US President Joe Biden and the second with leaders of the Quad countries. In his meeting with PM Modi, US President Joe Biden highlighted that the US-India relationship is bound to be stronger and said that from here on begins a new chapter in Indo-US ties. 

"The PM and I'll be talking about COVID, climate change, Indo-Pacific," he said and added that COVID is the main focus for now. Thanking Biden for welcoming him and the delegation, Prime Minister Modi recollected their earlier conversations in 2014 and in 2016, during which the latter had laid out the vision for India-US bilateral relations. 

At Quad, US President Joe Biden, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Australia's PM Scott Morrison, and Japanese PM Yoshihide Suga made their respective opening statements. According to reports, the summit will touch upon a variety of subjects like climate change, 5G technology, supply chains, critical infrastructure, and regional security. President Biden also cited that all four countries share the same world view.