It all began about 60 years ago when Dwight D Eisenhower became the first US President to visit India to give a fillip to bilateral relationship which has seen many ups and downs to finally settle down in the last few decades as a strategic partnership.
It was a landmark maiden visit by an American president and Eisenhower was greeted with a 21-gun salute when he landed in the national capital.
He met the then President Rajendra Prasad and Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru. During his visit, Eisenhower delivered a public speech at Delhi's Ramlila ground and addressed members of both Houses of Parliament. He was also given a tour of the Taj Mahal in Agra with Prime Minister Nehru accompanying him to the iconic monument.
Nixon's visit to India could not match the euphoria and excitement of Eisenhower's. He stayed in the country for less than a day and it achieved little with Nixon siding with Pakistan at the time of the 1971 Bangladesh War.
Nixon was baffled and annoyed by Americans' sympathies for India, which he described as a "physiological disorder", says abook based on declassified documents.
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Carter's visit came just months after the Janata Party's Morarji Desai succeeded Indira Gandhi as the country’s prime minister. During his three-day visit, President Carter addressed Parliament and visited a village near Delhi which was later named after him.
His visit was aimed at mending ties between India and the US against the backdrop of the 1971 Bangladesh War and the nuclear tests of 1974.
This was a presidential visit from America after over two decades and many regard it as a game-changing event during which Clinton and Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee set the tone for deepening of bilateral ties.
The visit also came at a tricky time in the backdrop of the US imposing sanctions on India following its 1999 nuclear test and the Kargil War.
Clinton visited several popular tourist destinations like Agra, Jaipur, Hyderabad and Mumbai, besides Delhi.
More importantly, the visit signified the beginning of the Indo-US strategic and economic partnership. During the visit, Clinton signed the Joint Statement on Energy and the Environment and also addressed Parliament.
George W Bush and First Lady Laura Bush visited during Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's first term in office. During his stay, Bush delivered a speech before a select audience at Delhi's Purana Qila. But the visit will be remembered for the finalisation of the nuclear deal which later allowed India to pursue nuclear commerce.