New York: India was looking forward to US President Barack Obama`s "very important" visit in November, External Affairs Minister SM Krishna has said, noting that
First Lady Michelle Obama was "excited" about the trip.
Krishna said that at a reception hosted by Obama for world leaders, who are here for the UN General Assembly session, he told the President that his visit to India was
going to be "very important".
"President Obama mentioned to me that he was looking forward to his visit to India and I conveyed to him that Dr Manmohan Singh and his government and the people of India are looking forward to welcoming him in India and it`s going to be a very important visit," the minister told a news agency.
"The First Lady (Michelle Obama) is excited about her visit," he said.
Reacting to the turnout of foreign ministers and envoys at a reception hosted for him by the Indian mission to the United Nations last night, Krishna noted that this was
indicative of India`s prominence on the international stage.
"This is India`s growth speaking up," he said following the event which was attended by 30 foreign ministers and 50 ambassadors as well as top United Nations diplomats.
Krishna has also been busy meeting his counterparts in bilateral and "plurilateral" sessions discussing several foreign policy issues ranging from disarmament to the peace
talks between the Israelis and Palestinians.
On September 22, Krishna had addressed the UN General Assembly on the Millennium Development Goals, and said that India was focusing on "inclusive growth."
On Monday, Krishna will address the annual debate of the UN General Assembly.
On whether his trip, so far, had been productive, Krishna said "everything that I`ve had...bilateral meetings, multilateral meetings...they have all been very very useful."
PTI
