Biden, Modi to deliver remarks, take media questions Thursday -White House

Indian Prime Minster Narendra Modi walks out of the airplane as he arrives at JFK airport in New York September 26, 2014, a day before his appearance at the United Nations General Assembly. Modi kicked off his maiden visit to the United States as India's leader on Friday. REUTERS/Mohammed Jaffer-SnapsIndia

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden and visiting Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will deliver remarks and take questions from journalists on Thursday during the Indian leader's state visit, the White House said.

It is unusual for Modi to take questions from the media, beyond occasional interviews. He has not addressed a single press conference in India since becoming prime minister about nine years ago. In May 2019 he attended a news conference but never took questions.

The White House had been pushing for Modi to answer questions from journalists, a senior U.S. official said.

White House press conferences with other world leaders have been tightly controlled, with U.S. officials designating reporters beforehand from the American and foreign media for Biden and his guest to call upon, and a very limited number of questions.

Biden is under pressure by his fellow Democrats to raise human rights with Modi amid concerns about democratic backsliding in India.

Modi has been to the United States five times since becoming prime minister in 2014, but the trip will be his first with the full diplomatic status of a state visit.

(Reporting by Katharine Jackson, Steve Holland and Kanishka Singh; Writing by Doina Chiacu; Editing by Grant McCool)