US President Joe Biden will travel to India next week to attend the G20 Summit in Delhi where he will also hold a bilateral meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the White House has confirmed. The bilateral meeting between Biden and PM Modi will take place on September 8, a day ahead of the official G20 Summit starts.

“On Thursday (September 7), the President will travel to New Delhi, India to attend the G20 Leaders’ Summit. On Friday, the President will participate in a bilateral meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi,” the White House said in a press note on President’s schedule released on Friday.

During the visit, the White House said, President Biden will also commend Prime Minister Modi’s leadership of the G20. The 18th G20 Summit will be held in Delhi from September 9 to 10 under India’s presidency.

“While in New Delhi, President Biden will also commend Prime Minister Modi’s leadership of the G20 and reaffirm the U.S. commitment to the G20 as the premier forum of economic cooperation, including by hosting it in 2026,” it said.

Biden will attend the G20 Summit in Delhi on September 9 and 10 where he will discuss several issues including Russia-Ukraine war, climate change, and transition to clean energy.

“President Biden and G20 partners will discuss a range of joint efforts to tackle global issues, including on the clean energy transition and combatting climate change, mitigating the economic and social impacts of Putin’s war in Ukraine, and increasing the capacity of multilateral development banks, including the World Bank, to better fight poverty, including by addressing global challenges,” the White House said.

Bilateral meetings with French President, UK PM also likely

Besides, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is also likely to hold separate bilateral meetings with French President Emmanuel Macron and Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina the sidelines of the Delhi G20 Summit.

Also, UK’s Indian-origin Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is likely to hold a separate bilateral meeting with Prime Minister Modi where a decision could be reached on India-UK Free Trade Agreement (FTA). Last month, UK Trade Secretary Kemi Badenoch was in New Delhi where she held intensive talks with Indian government officials on the prospective trade deal between India and the UK.

Speaking to reporters in Jaipur, Badenoch had said that the deal was in the final stage of negotiations. The issue visa liberalization for Indians is likely to raised during the bilateral meeting between PM Modi and Sunak.