German Chancellor Olaf Scholz arrived in New Delhi today for a visit to India from 25-26 February. Scholz is accompanied by senior officials and a high-level business delegation, and her visit to India is the first standalone visit by a German chancellor since the inception of the Inter-Governmental Consultations (IGC) mechanism between the two countries in 2011.
People familiar with the broad agenda of the Modi-Scholz talks said the fallout from the Russia-Ukraine conflict is expected to figure prominently during the deliberations. Scholz also plans to discuss Russia’s war on Ukraine with the prime minister. Narendra Modi At a time when Europe and its allies are struggling to keep up economic pressure on the Kremlin and isolate President Vladimir Putin.
The two leaders are also expected to deliberate on the overall situation in the Indo-Pacific region, a region that has seen increasing Chinese assertiveness over the past few years.
“The India-Germany Strategic Partnership is underpinned by shared values, trust and mutual understanding. Strong investment and trade ties, cooperation in the areas of green and sustainable development and growing people-to-people ties have strengthened bilateral ties,” the Ministry of External Affairs said. mentioned in the press release.
The MEA further said that the two countries also work closely on multilateral and international platforms, especially as part of the G4 UN Security Council Improvement.
India and Germany have a strong economic partnership. Germany is India’s largest trading partner in the European Union and has consistently been among India’s top 10 global trading partners. It is one of the largest foreign direct investors in India.
The government in New Delhi has long been dependent on Russian defense contractors and Germany wants to help it find alternative suppliers.
Swasti Rao, Associate Fellow at the Center for Europe and Eurasia at the Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defense Studies and Analyses, said, “The war in Ukraine has made both sides realize the need to explore opportunities and partnerships outside their traditional comfort zones and friends. ” Bloomberg,
“New Delhi is keen to deepen defense cooperation with Germany as it understands that Russia may no longer be able to meet its strategic needs,” Rao said. If sufficient progress has not been achieved.”
* with agency inputs
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