Two of world’s largest democracies — India and the United States — plan to work together more closely on key world issues. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and U.S President Barack Obama talked about more business investment in India, and closer cooperation on climate change and defeating terrorism, when they met at the White House Tuesday.

After the meeting, President Obama and Modi visited the Martin Luther King Junior Memorial, which honors one of America’s major civil rights leaders. The Indian Prime Minister then attended a lunch hosted by the U.S State Department, where security and economic partnership were at the top of the agenda.

Both the leaders also wrote a joint op-ed piece in the Washington Post about taking forward a relationship whose potential, they said, has yet to be fully realized. CCTV America’s Jessica Stone reports with details from the meeting.

Following their first formal meeting, Obama hailed Modi for his energetic approach to addressing India’s challenges since taking office. The president singled out the prime minister’s focus on addressing “the needs of the poorest of the poor,” as well as making India a source of peace and stability in the region.

“We have so much in common, it is critical for us to deepen and broaden the existing framework and partnership that already exists,” Obama said.

Modi, speaking through a translator, said he expected the economic partnership between the U.S. and India to “grow rapidly in the coming years.” He offered optimism that the two governments could work through trade disputes and obstacles to nuclear energy cooperation with American companies. The Prime Minister also expressed support for a slow withdrawal of U.S troops from its neighbor, Afghanistan.

CCTV America is joined by Sadanand Dhume, a Resident Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, to talk about the current state of relations between India and the United States.

CCTV America’s Phil Yin spoke to Peter Kohli, CEO of DMS Funds, about India’s business reforms initiated by the Modi government.