Modi arrives in US for nuclear summit

Washington, March 31 Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday arrived in the US to attend the fourth Nuclear Security Summit being hosted by President Barack Obama.

Modi, who arrived late in the night at Washington, D.C., from Brussels, was received at the airport by US Ambassador to India Richard Verma and Indian envoy Arun K. Singh. 

"Shifting gears from bilateral to multilateral diplomacy. PM @narendramodi arrives late at night in Washington D.C.," the external affairs ministry spokesperson Vikas Swarup tweeted.

The Prime Minister's Office said in a tweet that Modi, in addition to attending the Nuclear Security Summit will interact with world leaders. 

Leaders of 53 nations and four international organisations will be attending the Washington summit on nuclear security.

The Nuclear Security Summit process has been focusing on the global threat posed by nuclear terrorism and urgent measures required to prevent terrorists and other non-state actors from gaining access to sensitive nuclear materials and technologies. 

The 2016 Summit is expected to take stock of the progress of the previous Nuclear Security Summit Communiqués and work plan and outline the future agenda.

This will be followed by three plenary sessions on Friday when India, along with other participating nations, will submit their national nuclear progress reports.

On Thursday evening, Modi will be attending a leaders-only thematic dinner to be hosted by Obama at the White House.

The prime minister will also meet scientists from Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO) during his visit. 

Modi arrived in the US from Brussels, where he spent a busy day interacting with the Belgian leadership and attended the India-European Union summit.

This is Modi's third visit to the US since taking office in May 2014.