India has reportedly invited the US President Joe Biden to attend the Republic Day celebrations on January 26, 2024, media reported on Wednesday (20 September). According to the media reports, US President Joe Biden along with heads of Australia and Japan have been invited by India as the chief guest for next year’s Republic Day Parade.
Speaking at an event organised by Ananta Aspen Centre, a non-partisan and not-for-profit centre, US Ambassador to India, Eric Garcetti revealed the same.
He stated that the invitation was extended to Biden by PM Modi on the sidelines of the bilateral meeting that took place between the two leaders at the recently concluded G20 Summit. However, there hasn’t been an official confirmation from the government side about the invite to QUAD leaders.
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi was the chief guest at this year’s Republic Day parade. Previously, in 2018, India had invited former US President Donald Trump as the Chief guest for the Republic Day celebrations, however, due to prior domestic commitments, he declined the invitation.
If these reports prove accurate and Joe Biden participates in the Republic Day event, he would become the second U.S. President to attend India’s Republic Day as the Chief Guest. Notably, In 2015, Barack Obama was the first US President to attend India’s Republic Day parade as Chief Guest.
Recently, US President Joe Biden visited India for the G20 Summit where PM Modi reportedly extended the invitation. During the bilateral, India and the US settled the seventh and last outstanding World Trade Organisation (WTO) dispute. The previous six disputes were resolved during PM Modi’s state visit to the US in June 2023.
Regarding the visit, the India-US joint statement read, “Prime Minister Narendra Modi welcomed United States President Joseph R. Biden, Jr., to India today, reaffirming the close and enduring partnership between India and the United States. The leaders expressed their appreciation for the substantial progress underway to implement the ground breaking achievements of Prime Minister Modi’s historic, June 2023, visit to Washington.”