Angela Merkel arrives in Delhi, will hold talks with PM Modi on Nov 1

German Chancellor Angela Merkel has arrived in New Delhi on Thursday, October 31, to participate in the fifth India-Germany Inter-Governmental Consultations (IGC). The German Chancellor is on a 2-day visit to India and is scheduled to hold talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday on various bilateral issues. Nearly 20 agreements are expected to be signed between the two countries.

She was received by Minister of State in the Prime Minister's Office Jitendra Singh at the Indira Gandhi International Airport in the national capital, upon her arrival in Delhi. Ahead of her visit, Embassy of India in Berlin had announced on Twitter of Merkel's impending visit to India and attached a statement of the German Chancellor.

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The German Chancellor in the statement expressed her happiness for the forthcoming meet with PM Modi. "It is my fourth visit to India and I am happy to meet Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and to discuss with him about our bilateral relations. IGCs give us the opportunity to talk about the whole breadth of the future of our relationship. This time, the focus will be economic and trade relations, innovation and digitalization, and climate protection and sustainable development,” the statement read. 

"Additionally, we will talk about how we can work towards climate protection and sustainable development in our relationship. We will also discuss foreign and security policy issues -- that means that our discussion will cover a large spectrum,” the statement read, and further added that the discussions will also touch upon renewable energy, smart cities, and new forms of mobility.

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'Developmental dynamic of India'

Angela Merkel further said that she is impressed by the "developmental dynamic of India" and how the country has rapidly developed over the past few years. "All of us know that India has great potential. Therefore it is important that we, as Germans, the largest trade partner of India in the EU (European Union), work further for the strengthening of our relationship and learn from India and also are able to use our technological development in India." "That would be a win-win situation for both countries," Merkel concluded.

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'Strategic Partnership' since 2001

India and Germany have had a 'Strategic Partnership' since 2001, which has been further strengthened with the Intergovernmental Consultations (IGC) at the level of Head of Governments which allows for a comprehensive review of cooperation and identification of fresh areas of engagement. India is amongst a select group of countries with which Germany has such a dialogue-oriented mechanism. Germany is India's largest trade partner in the 28-member European Union bloc. 

In 2016-17, the bilateral trade turnover between the two countries was USD 18.76 billion, with India exporting goods worth USD 7.18 billion to Germany and importing German products worth USD 11.58 billion, according to German media. 

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