Modi's US visit still on despite Trump rant against India on climate change
June 03, 2017 09:04
US President Donald Trump unloaded on India among other countries during an epic rant on Thursday while announcing American withdrawal from the Paris climate change accord.
The shrill speech, replete with claims of American victimhood at the hands of the rest of the world, casts a chill on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's expected visit to the White House later this month, which officials say remains on schedule.
Phone and cables lines between Washington and New Delhi were buzzing on Thursday and Friday as Indian officials and diplomats took stock of Trump's direct, no-holds-barred attack in which he accused New Delhi of trying to extract "billions and billions and billions" of dollars in foreign aid from the developed world to sign up for the climate accord.
Although dates for the PM's trip have not been formally or officially announced, the White House has penciled in June 26-27 for the first face-to-face meeting between Trump and Modi.
The meeting, which Indian officials said on background is still on despite the climate change fireworks, will now take place under a cloud of misgivings, including the Trump administration's crackdown of guest worker visas that is adversely affecting Indian businesses, its squeeze on US manufacturing abroad that is forcing a scaling down of US investment in India, and now its withdrawal from the Paris Treaty after previous US administrations dragged New Delhi kicking and screaming into it.
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