Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday greeted the people of US on the occasion of their 239th Independence Day and said he was "extremely excited and confident about the renewed energy" in India-US ties."Dearest sisters and brothers of US, on the occasion of Independence Day, I convey my warm wishes to you all. The ties between India and US are time tested and connected by shared values. We are both vibrant democracies and remain very proud of our democratic framework," he said in a message.Modi added that he was "extremely excited and confident about the renewed energy in India-US ties".
"Our economic ties are strong and our cultural ties are vibrant. Last year I visited US and in January this year, President (Barack) Obama came to India and became the first ever president of US to join our Republic Day celebrations as the chief guest," he said.He added: "Substantial ground was covered during both these visits as far as strengthening India-US ties are concerned.""Strong India-US ties will benefit people of our nations and the world at large. I am optimistic that our relations are going to get even better in the times to come," he said.The US formally separated from Britain on July 4, 1776.