By IANS,
New Delhi : German Chancellor Angela Merkel will be in India on a two-day visit beginning May 31, when the two countries will hold their first inter-governmental consultation on defence, science and technology, energy, and capacity building and sign bilateral agreements.
Merkel, who will be accompanied by a large number of her ministerial colleagues, will also be honoured with the Jawaharlal Nehru Award for International Understanding during the visit, apart from a plenary talk with Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
She is expected to discuss with Manmohan Singh the $10.4-billion Indian defence tender to buy 126 modern fighter jets for which European consortium EADS Cassidian’s Eurofighter Typhoon is shortlisted along with French Dassault’s Rafale aircraft.
“We look forward to the chancellor’s visit next week, which is in a certain sense a first…because it is the first Indo-German inter-governmental consultations. We consider this a milestone in our strategic relationship. We consider this meet will take our partnership to new heights. It is also an expression of special trust between the two countries,” German Ambassador Thomas Matussek told reporters here Friday.
So far, Germany has conducted such government-to-government consultations only with a very limited number of European countries. This is the first time it is having such talks with a non-European country, with the exception of Israel.
Matussek noted that bilateral relation is broad-based and the consultation was “a political signal”.
“We see India as a key partner in South Asia and a key partner in global affairs,” he said.
Merkel will also meet President Pratibha Patil and chairperson of India’s ruling United Progressive Alliance Sonia Gandhi.
The chancellor will also inaugurate the India-Germany Year celebrations in the capital that will go till middle of 2012.
Merkel will be accompanied by the German ministers of defence, foreign affairs, home affairs, education and research, transport and urban development, economics, and environment.