United States Vice President JD Vance was welcomed with a ceremonial Guard of Honour upon his arrival at Palam Airport in New Delhi for his first official visit to India. Accompanied by Second Lady Usha Vance and their children, the Vice President was received by Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw.
Large hoardings welcoming Vice President Vance were also installed near the airport ahead of his arrival.
The Vice President’s four-day official visit will span from April 21 to 24, with a number of high-level engagements planned to strengthen bilateral ties between India and the US.
A key highlight of the visit is the scheduled meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi today in New Delhi. The formal meeting is set to take place at 6:30 pm at the Prime Minister’s official residence at 7, Lok Kalyan Marg.
The leaders are expected to focus discussions on economic, trade, and defence cooperation, reinforcing the deepening strategic partnership between the two democracies.
Following his official meetings in Delhi, Vice President Vance and his family will visit Jaipur on Tuesday (April 22) and Agra on Wednesday (April 23). His visit will conclude with his departure on April 24 at 6:40 am.
Speaking on the significance of the visit, Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said:
“We have a comprehensive strategic global partnership; when you have that level of partnership with any country, obviously, you will discuss all relevant issues.”
He further noted:
“Of course our relationship is such that we are doing anything that is part of our human endeavour from part of our bilateral engagement … so all these bilateral issues will be discussed and we are very positive that the visit will give a further boost to our bilateral ties.”
On the possibility of a trade agreement, Jaiswal added:
“We are talking to the US side so that a bilateral trade agreement can be done.”
Prior to arriving in India, Vice President Vance concluded a three-day visit to Italy, which included bilateral talks with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, and religious services over Easter weekend, including a meeting with Pope Francis and Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican Secretary of State.