US Director of National Intelligence (DNI) Tulsi Gabbard announced on Monday (local time) that she has commenced a multi-nation trip to the Indo-Pacific region, which includes visits to Japan, Thailand, and India.
Gabbard revealed that her first stop was in Honolulu. She emphasized the importance of “building strong relationships, understanding, and open lines of communication” to achieve US President Donald Trump’s objectives of peace, freedom, and prosperity.
Sharing a post on X, Gabbard wrote, “I am #WheelsUp on a multi-nation trip to the Indo-Pacific, a region I know very well having grown up as a child of the Pacific. I’ll be going to Japan, Thailand, and India, with a brief stop in France en route back to DC. Building strong relationships, understanding, and open lines of communication are vital to achieving President Trump’s objectives of peace, freedom and prosperity. First stop: Honolulu where I’ll visit IC partners and INDOPACOM leaders, and our troops engaging in training.”
Notably, this marks the first visit by a top White House official to India under the Trump administration. Her trip follows Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the United States in February. During his visit, PM Modi met with Tulsi Gabbard and described her as a “strong votary” of the India-US friendship.
Gabbard, in turn, called it an “honor” to welcome PM Modi and expressed her enthusiasm for continuing to strengthen US-India relations.
PM Modi’s February trip to the US was his first visit after Donald Trump assumed office for a second term. During the visit, he met President Trump at the White House, marking their first meeting since Trump was sworn in as the 47th US President on January 20. The two leaders shared a warm hug as Trump welcomed PM Modi at the White House.
PM Modi was among the first world leaders to visit the United States following Trump’s second inauguration and received an invitation to visit the US within just three weeks of the new administration taking office.