Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee will be one of the half dozen leaders President George Bush will meet when Vajpayee goes to New York to address the United Nations General Assembly on around September 10.
US administration officials in New Delhi said Bush would be busy with the events commemorating the first anniversary of the September 11 attack and would, therefore, curtail his customary consultations with world leaders. A US President usually meets a dozen or more world leaders in the week that he spends in New York during the United Nations General Assembly.
However, this year, New York is planning a memorial ceremony at the World Trade Centre site, including a sunset ceremony where President Bush is scheduled to light an eternal flame in memory of those who died. Sources say Prime Minister Vajpayee will be invited to join the ceremonies, though it is not clear whether Pakistan will also attend.
In the next month, a number of visitors from the US administration are scheduled to visit India. Among them will be deputy secretary of state Richard Armitage, treasury secretary Paul o