Press Statement by PM

Chancellor Scholz, Friends, Guten Tag, Namaskar! First of all, I extend my heartfelt thanks to Chancellor Scholz for the warm welcome extended to me and my delegation. I am happy that my first foreign trip of the year is taking place in Germany. My first telephone conversation with a foreign leader earlier this year was also with my friend, Chancellor Scholz. For Chancellor Scholz, today’s India-Germany IGC is the first IGC with any country this year.These many firsts show how much priority both India and Germany are giving to this important partnership. As democracies, India and Germany share many common values. On the basis of these shared values and shared interests, there has been remarkable progress in our bilateral relations over the years. Our last IGC was held in 2019.Significant changes have taken place in the world since then. The COVID-19 pandemic has had a devastating impact on the global economy. Recent geopolitical events also showed how fragile world peace and stability is, and how inter-connected all countries are.From the very beginning of the Ukrainian crisis, we called for an immediate cease-fire, insisting that dialogue is the only way to resolve the dispute. We believe that there will be no winning party in this war, everyone will suffer. That is why we are in favour of peace.Oil prices are skyrocketing due to the turmoil triggered by the Ukraine conflict; there is also shortage of food grains and fertilizers in the world. This has burdened every family in the world, but its impact on developing and poor countries will be even more serious. India is deeply concerned by the humanitarian impact of this conflict. We have sent humanitarian aid to Ukraine on our behalf. We are also trying to help other friendly countries through food exports, oil supplies and economic assistance. Today, the India-Germany partnership has got a new direction from its sixth IGC. This IGC has given important guidance to our cooperation in both energy and environment sectors. I am confident that the decisions taken today will have a positive impact on the future of our region and the world. Today, we are pursuing the Indo-Germany Partnership on Green and Sustainable Development.India has shown to the world that green and sustainable growth is an article of faith for us by raising its climate ambition in Glasgow. Under this new partnership, Germany has decided to support India’s green growth plans with an additional development assistance of 10 billion euros by 2030. For this I thank Germany and Chancellor Scholz. Considering our complementary strengths, we have also decided to create a Green Hydrogen Task Force. This will be very useful in enhancing the green hydrogen infrastructure in both the countries. Both India and Germany have long experience in development cooperation in other countries. Today, we have decided to combine our experiences and work on joint projects in third countries through trilateral cooperation. Our cooperation will provide an alternative to transparent and sustainable development projects for the developing world. Friends, In the post-COVID era, India is witnessing the fastest growth compared to other growing economies. We are confident that India will be an important pillar of global recovery. Recently, we signed trade agreements with the UAE and Australia in a very short time. We, even with the EU, are committed to early progress in the FTA negotiations. India’s skilled workers and professionals have benefited the economies of many countries. I am confident that the Comprehensive Migration and Mobility Partnership Agreement between India and Germany will facilitate movement between the two countries. I once again thank you very much for this summit and your initiative.