German Ambassador to India Walter J Lindner on the first working day of the new German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said that without India nothing can be done on the green energy and climate change front.
Speaking to reporters in Mumbai on Thursday, Lindner said, “There is a lot to be done and I think nothing can be done without India. You need India to save this climate because of this planet.” But every fifth person is an Indian,” Lindner said.
Lindner expected the new government to begin consultations with the Indian government on a variety of topics over the next six months.
“We will see that we have good chemistry,” Lindner told reporters in Mumbai.
“PM Modi has already congratulated the new chancellor and is looking forward to the first meeting. I think we will have government-to-government discussions in the first half of 2022. This time the Indian cabinet will come to Germany.
The coalition government was sworn in for the first time in Germany on Wednesday night.
Lindner said the new German government would be more forthcoming on the subject of climate change. He said former Chancellor Angela Merkel had stopped 28 working nuclear plants, arguing that it was not morally responsible to run them.
“The new government, which has the Green Party, will be even more forthcoming. This (climate change) is one of the most challenging questions,” Lindner said.
Lindner, however, declined to comment on the three-party coalition government’s plan to legalize marijuana. “Can I postpone this question until I read the alliance treaty to know the reasons behind it?” They said.
support for india
Lindner said Germany plans to spend 90 percent of its 1.2 million euro fund on climate change.
“We are funding metros in Mumbai, Nagpur and Kochi. We can do something in Surat too,” Lindner said.
He praised the e-rickshaws in Delhi which have played a role in reducing carbon emissions. “It’s how you get the CO2 out of the road,” he said.
Appreciating India’s role in the lunar mission, information technology and artificial intelligence, Lindner said, “This is not a poor India but a highly educated India. Every country like us and yours needs to chip in to cooperate.”
Mumbai Connection
Lindner reported that Chancellor Scholz had visited Mumbai in 2012 as mayor of Hamburg, Germany’s second largest city after the capital Berlin.
“There was a picture of him in front of the Taj Mahal Palace. He had come to a port for cooperation,” he said.
Asked about the status of cooperation between Mumbai and Hamburg, Lindner said, “It was 10 years ago. I have to find out the status of progress.”
Lindner called Scholz a fighting man in the job (of chancellor) after Angela Merkel stepped down 16 years later. “The opposition also says that Angela Merkel was an icon. She did a lot for Germany as a female leader, being humble, being a liberal… as a man who explained the world. She always kept her word without shouting. This was his legacy. She was a crisis manager, of course.. the crisis internationally and in the EU,” Lindner said.
Drawing a similarity between Merkel and Scholz, the ambassador said, “The new chancellor is a very experienced man. He was the mayor of Hamburg. The people of Hamburg are like the people here (Mumbai). They don’t talk much. Merkel too She was like that. She’s also calm and talkative. For the first time in 16 years, it’s big shoes (to be in Merkel) but she already has some reputation. Pretty soon she’ll show she’s the right person (Job In).
invite to bollywood
Walter Lindner said that he is going to suggest 10 “absolutely breathtaking places” in Germany for producers and actors in Bollywood to shoot their films.
“They go to Switzerland, Paris and London. Of late, they were in Budapest, Hungary. I will give ideas to Bollywood on 10 locations in Germany. I advise producers and actors to consider Germany as well. We will give them all the information about how the government makes life easier for them. It’s about generating more interest in German locations,” Lindner said.
Lindner also said that Germany is interested in funding the restoration of heritage sites in Maharashtra. “This is a preliminary stage. We have asked experts what is on their list of reinstatement,” he said.
Lindner indicated that Germany could fund the restoration of a garden, museum, synagogue, fort or library.
“We need a list of items. I have to convince my government that they give money. There are many options. We will see which one fits in our budget,” he said.
Fact Check Video: This image does not show the anti-vaccination protests in Germany