Prime Minister Narendra Modi met US President Donald Trump at the White House on Monday for their first meeting since both of them assumed office. Modi gifted Trump a folio containing an original commemorative postal stamp of Abraham Lincoln that had been issued by India in 1965.
He also presented Trump a wooden chest with intricate inlay pattern that is a specialty of Hoshiarpur in Punjab.
The First Lady Melania Trump was presented with a hamper containing a traditional, handcrafted Himachali silver bracelet, tea and honey from Kangra valley. She was also gifted hand-woven shawls from Jammu and Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh.
The issue of the stamp Modi gave Trump, apart from honouring the memory of Lincoln, also symbolised the closeness of the ideals for which Lincoln stood and those which drove Mahatma Gandhi. Both leaders believed in the basic goodness of the common man, and in emancipation of the downtrodden.
Modi became the first foreign leader to enjoy a White House dinner since Trump came to power and the two leaders discussed a range of issues.
In a joint press briefing, Trump stressed on eliminating and destroying radical Islamic terrorism and emphasised on how both nations – the US and India – are deeply affected by the malaise of terrorism.
Modi also laid special emphasis on the growing camaraderie between India and the United States, asserting that eliminating safe havens of terror and bringing stability to Afghanistan were major priorities of both nations.
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