German Chancellor Scholz to visit India by Oct end: Ambassador Ackermann

German Ambassador to India Philipp Ackermann said on Thursday that German Chancellor Olaf Scholz will visit India by the end of October for Inter-Governmental Consultations (IGC).

While speaking to ANI, Ackermann said, "Germany and India are committed to a biennial rhythm of intergovernmental consultations. And this this fall, it's Delhi's time or term. Last time, Prime Minister Modi came to Berlin in the spring of 2022. Now, we are waiting for the Chancellor and a group of ministers of his cabinet to come end of October."

Higlighting, the important agendas during the visit, the envoy affirmed, "We will have a very rich agenda of subjects that will be discussed on many levels."

"Ministers will have bilateral with their counterparts, Chancellor will take it up with the Prime Minister in a bilateral meeting and then the whole group comes together - the Indian side and the German side, and then decide on the roadmap that is ruled out for the next 2 years. So, it's a very important meeting," the envoy added.

Notably, in May 2022, PM Modi visited Berlin as part of the 6th Indo-German Inter-Governmental Consultations (IGC).

During their talks, the two heads of government acknowledged the importance of digital transformation as a key driver for technological, economic and societal change.

In addition, Modi and Scholz signed a Joint Declaration of Intent (JDI) establishing a Green and Sustainable Development Partnership. With this partnership, Germany intends to strengthen its financial and technical cooperation with India by investing at least 10 billion Euros until 2030.

The goal, however, is to create a long-term partnership. This will promote German-Indian research and development (R & D) and encourage private investment. Both sides stressed the importance of swift implementation of existing and future commitments.

The Chancellor also stressed that Germany was willing to continue and expand the two countries' close cooperation in global matters.

Germany and India's diplomatic relations have now existed for more than seven decades. One of its key pillars is their shared interest in strengthening multilateral cooperation and in promoting a sustainable digital economy.