External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has said that it was a “great honour” to represent India at the inauguration ceremony of US President Donald Trump. Sharing the pictures of the inauguration ceremony on X, he wrote, “A great honour to represent India at the inauguration ceremony of @POTUS President Donald J Trump and @VP Vice President JD Vance in Washington DC today.”
His attendance underscores the importance of India-US relations and the global diplomatic ties shared between the two nations as President Trump begins his second term in office.
Earlier in the day, Donald Trump was sworn in as the 47th president of the United States at the US Capitol in Washington, DC. US Chief Justice John Roberts administered the oath to Trump. Prior to Trump’s swearing-in, JD Vance was sworn in as the 50th US Vice-President.
After taking the oath, Trump declared that the “golden age” of America had begun and today marks the ‘Liberation Day’ for the country. The 47th US President further spoke on the inflation in the country and reiterated his earlier slogan of ‘drill baby drill’ which refers to his promise of drilling for oil.
“The inflation crisis was caused by massive overspending and escalating energy prices, and that is why today I will also declare a national energy emergency. We will drill, baby, drill,” Trump said.
Referring to the wildfires in Los Angeles, the US president criticised the response of the administration and emphasised that this can’t be allowed to happen.
“More recently Los Angeles, where we are watching fires still tragically burn. From weeks ago without even a token of defence, they’re raging through the houses and communities, even affecting some of the wealthiest and most powerful individuals in our country, some of whom are sitting here right now. They don’t have a home any longer, that’s interesting, but we can’t let this happen,” Trump said.
He added, “We have a public health system that does not deliver in times of disaster, yet more money is spent on it than any country anywhere in the world and we have an education system that teaches our children to be ashamed of themselves in many cases to hate our country despite the love that we try so desperately to. All of this will change starting today and it will change very quickly.” (ANI)
