This Article is From Nov 30, 2015

Barack Obama to Meet PM Modi in Paris Today

Barack Obama to Meet PM Modi in Paris Today

Barack Obama will meet PM Modi today in the Paris climate change conference. (Press Trust of India Photo)

Washington: US President Barack Obama will meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi today in Paris where the two leaders will review progress in bilateral relationship and discussion on regional and global issues including terrorism.

The two leaders are expected to meet at 2.45 PM local time Paris (7.15 PM IST) on the sidelines of the crucial climate change conference.

President Obama and PM Modi would primarily focus on climate change but will also review progress in bilateral relationship and discussion on regional and global issues including terrorism.

They are likely to make a brief media appearance including remarks from the two leaders, according to the President's schedule released by the White House on Sunday.

President Obama will also hold a bilateral meeting with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping.

After PM Modi came to power in May last year, the two leaders have met for a record five times. They last met in New York on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly Meet in September.

The Paris meeting is the sixth bilateral meeting between them.

The two leaders would also be joined by French President Francois Hollande along with other leaders and members of the private sector for Mission Innovation Event, the White House said.

President Obama arrived in Paris late last night amidst an unprecedented security, in the aftermath of the terrorist attack early this month.

The first meeting between the two leaders was in Washington in September last year when the US President hosted PM Modi at the White House. President Obama accepted PM Modi's invitation to be the chief guest at the Republic Day Parade on January 26 this year in New Delhi. In between, they met twice on the sidelines of other international meetings, including G-20.

The Paris climate change conference also known as Conference of Parties (CoP-21) is set to kick off tomorrow in Paris and will go on till December 11.

Paris climate conference will for the first time in over 20 years of UN negotiations, aim to achieve a legally binding universal agreement on climate, with the aim of keeping global warming below 2A°C.

The conference is expected to attract close to 50,000 participants including 25,000 official delegates from government, intergovernmental organisations, UN agencies, NGOs and civil society.
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