<div style="float: left;">
	<img align="left" alt="Narendra Modi" class="imgCont" height="464" src="http://bsmedia.business-standard.com/_media/bs/img/article/2017-05/29/full/1496073456-7387.jpg" style="border: 1px solid #DDD; margin-right: 10px; padding: 1px; float: left; z-index: 0;" title="Narendra Modi" width="620" />
	<div style="float: left; clear: both; font-style:italic; padding: 10px 10px 10px 0px; width:620px;">
		Narendra Modi. Photo: TwitterPrime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday described terrorism as the &ldquo;gravest challenge&rdquo; facing humanity and urged Europe to play a lead role in developing an effective global response under the aegis of the United Nation (UN) to deal with this menace.</div>
	<br />
	<div>
		Modi arrived here on the first leg of his six-day, four-nation tour of Germany, Spain, Russia and France. In an interview to the German newspaper Handelsblatt he said, &ldquo;Europe has been hit hard by terrorism&rdquo;.</div>
	<br />
	<div>
		&ldquo;To our mind, terrorism is the gravest challenge facing humanity. Europe must play a lead role in developing an effective global response under the aegis of the United Nations to deal with this menace,&rdquo; he said.</div>
	<br />
	<div>
		Modi&rsquo;s remarks come in the wake of a spate of terrorist attacks that have struck European countries like Germany, France, the UK and Sweden recently.</div>
	<br />
	<div>
		The latest terrorrist attack to have rocked Europe was at a concert in Manchester where a suicide bomber blew himself up, killing 22 people.</div>
	<br />
	<div>
		Speaking to the country&rsquo;s leading business daily, Modi struck a warning note against moves towards protectionism and called for Europe to ensure that the global economy &ldquo;remains open for international trade and free flow of investment and people&rdquo;.</div>
	<br />
	<div>
		&ldquo;We do have concerns regarding protectionist and anti- immigrant sentiments in the world. We are hopeful that they will be addressed,&rdquo; Modi said. &ldquo;We live in an interconnected world. Movement of goods, capital and people across borders is essential to our collective progress and to realise the benefits of globalisation,&rdquo; he said.</div>
	<br />
	<div>
		Modi stressed the importance of India to Germany, stating that it was as among the &ldquo;most open&rdquo; and &ldquo;fastest growing major economies in the world&rdquo;. The prime minister also called for reform of the international order to reflect current day global realities, rather than the global bodies created in the aftermath of the World War.</div>
	<br />
	<div>
		&ldquo;India has been seeking reform of the UN Security Council for quite some time...There is an urgent need to expand the Security Council,&rdquo; he said, adding that India has all the credentials to become a permanent member in an expanded Security Council.</div>
	<br />
	<div>
		He said India sees Germany as an important partner in the national flagship programmes of Make in India, Skill India, Startup India, Clean India and Smart Cities. &ldquo;The European Union is an important global player. Its stability has a significant bearing on global developments, including peace and security. India values its strong and multi-faceted relationship with both the United Kingdom and the European Union and is committed to further strengthening its ties with both the strategic partners. We will continue this approach,&rdquo; he added.</div>
	<br />
	<div>
		On the German side, Merkel had recently said, &ldquo;The times when we could rely on the other have passed ... We Europeans, we must really take destiny into their own hands.&rdquo; In India and China, Merkel sees the possibility of a partnership that would help slow down climate change and promote free trade, &lsquo;Handelsblatt&rsquo; claimed.</div>
	<br />
	<div>
		The prime minister&rsquo;s visit to Germany has been described as a &ldquo;new chapter&rdquo; in the bilateral relations between the two countries.</div>
	<br />
	<div>
		&ldquo;I am confident that this visit will open a new chapter in our bilateral cooperation with Germany and further deepen our strategic partnership,&rdquo; Modi had said in a Facebook post on the eve of his visit.</div>
	<br />
	<div>
		&ldquo;Germany is a valuable partner in our development initiatives and German competencies fit well with my vision for India&rsquo;s transformation,&rdquo; he said.</div>
	<br />
	<div>
		The prime minister said he and Merkel plan to &ldquo;chart out a future roadmap of cooperation with focus on trade and investment, security and counter-terrorism, innovation and science and technology, skill development, urban infrastructure, railways and civil aviation, clean energy, development cooperation, health and alternative medicine&rdquo;.</div>
	<br />
	<div>
		Bilateral trade between the two countries stands at 17.42 billion euros in 2016, up only marginally from 17.33 billion euros the previous year.</div>
	<br />
	<div>
		Germany is the seventh largest foreign direct investor (FDI) in India and the total FDI from April 2000 until December 2016 amounted to 9.54 billion dollars. A total of 1,800 German companies are operating in India.</div>
</div>

Modi struck a warning note against moves towards protectionism

Europe must play lead role in combating terrorism, says Modi in Berlin

Modi struck a warning note against moves towards protectionism

More From This Section

Lightning strikes in five districts in Bihar; 83 killed, many injured

Monsoon arrives in Delhi, but rainfall activity to be weak for next 3 days

India says China amassing troops and armaments on LAC a clear violation

China amassed troops on LAC since May, violated agreements, says India

Explore News