As Namaste Trump meets Howdy Modi in India, common threat China looms large

US President Donald Trump arrives in India on Monday for his first official visit, which will include trips to the Taj Mahal and Mahatma Gandhi’s former home

But while an assertive Beijing brings the US and India closer, differences exist over trade, Russian weapons and Narendra Modi’s Hindu nationalist agenda

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A sign welcoming US President Donald Trump ahead of his visit to Ahmedabad, India, to attend an event called “Namaste Trump”, along the lines of a “Howdy Modi” rally attended by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Houston last September. Photo: AP

Published: 1:00am, 23 Feb 2020Updated: 1:00am, 23 Feb 2020

If there is one foreign leader who has the inside track for organising the kind of over-the-top, boisterous public reception Donald Trump revels in, it has to be Narendra Modi – the Indian prime minister who in many ways is a kindred spirit to the showman US president.

Modi’s government is pulling out all the stops, at an expense of some US$14 million, ahead of the maiden two-day trip by the US president and First Lady Melania Trump that begins in Ahmedabad on Monday. The first day of Trump’s jam-packed itinerary includes a visit to Mahatma Gandhi’s Sabarmati Ashram – where he will receive the gift of a spinning wheel – followed by an exuberant mass rally with Modi to open the world’s largest cricket stadium. Capping off his first day in India will be a dusk visit with Melania to the 17th-century monument to love, the Taj Mahal.

Known for his disdain for far-flung trips, the US president has uncharacteristically raved about his upcoming Indian sojourn.

In his usual hyperbolic style, Trump on Tuesday repeated an earlier claim that Modi had told him in a phone conversation that “seven million people” would line the streets to greet him when Air Force One touches down in Ahmedabad. The assertion has been ridiculed because it means virtually the city’s entire population would be out greeting him. On Thursday, the president doubled down on the claim, saying “10 million people” would show up.

Beyond the razzmatazz to wow Trump on Monday, formal events are on the cards the next day in New Delhi. The US president will meet Modi and his officials, confer with Indian President Ramnath Kovind, and participate in a round table with Indian corporate titans.

A US$2.6 billion deal for India to buy 24 Seahawk helicopters from Lockheed Martin is expected to be signed during the visit – a purchase that will take the total value of US arms exports to India to nearly US$20 billion, up from virtually zero two-way defence trade 12 years ago.