Narendra Modi Arrives in the U.S. for Second Tour as Indian Leader

India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi waves to well wishers after arriving at his hotel ahead of the 2015 General Assembly of the United Nations in Manhattan, New York September 23, 2015.Mohammed Jaffer/Reuters

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has turned what might have been a quick cameo at a United Nations summit this week into a high-profile tour of the U.S. in his latest push to raise India’s global profile.

Mr. Modi’s six-day visit, which begins Thursday and will combine political hobnobbing in New York with a tour of Silicon Valley, comes two days after the arrival of another Asian leader: China’s President Xi Jinping.

Since coming to power 16 months ago, Mr. Modi has brought India closer to the U.S. as China’s foreign policy across Asia has grown more assertive. Mr. Modi’s first official visit to the U.S. was in September 2014, and he hosted President Barack Obama in India in January. Both countries have expressed concern about conflicts in the South China Sea that involve Beijing.

Mr. Modi and Mr. Obama are scheduled to meet on Monday.

“The U.S.-India relationship is a bright spot on the international landscape and is one of the most important bilateral relationships in the world,” Secretary of State John Kerry told a news conference in Washington on Tuesday.

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