New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a video-teleconference with his German counterpart, Federal Chancellor Dr. Angela Merkel today.
PM Modi appreciated the long-standing role of Chancellor Merkel in providing stable and strong leadership on the European and global stage and thanked her for guiding the growth of the India-Germany Strategic Partnership.
He took to microblogging site Twitter and wrote, “As we celebrate the 70th anniversary of our diplomatic relations and the 20th anniversary of our Strategic Partnership with Germany this year, Chancellor Merkel and I had a fruitful video call today.”
He added, “I thanked her for her long-standing personal commitment to deepening India-Germany ties. We also exchanged views on other regional and global issues, including COVID-19 pandemic.”
The two leaders discussed key issues of mutual importance including the response to the COVID-19 pandemic, bilateral ties, rebuttal issues, particularly India-EU relations.
The Prime Minister briefed Chancellor Merkel on the developments in India about vaccine development and the assured Chancellor Merkel of India’s commitment to deploy its capacities for the benefit of the world. He conveyed his best wishes for the early containment of the new wave of infections in Germany and other European countries.
The Prime Minister welcomed Germany’s decision to join the International Solar Alliance (ISA) and expressed his desire to further strengthen cooperation with Germany under the platform of Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrasthe structure (CDRI).
Noting that this year marks the 70th anniversary of setting up bilateral relations between India and Germany and the 20th anniversary of the Strategic Partnership, the two leaders agreed to hold the sixth Intergovernmental Consultations (IGC) at an early date in 2021 and to set an ambitious agenda for the same.