Joint Press Conference by Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh and Chancellor of Federal Republic of Germany Dr. Angela Merkel

30/10/2007

Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh: Your Excellency Chancellor Dr. Angela Merkel, Distinguished Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen of the Press:

I once again extend a very warm welcome to Chancellor Merkel on her first visit to India.

Chancellor Merkel and I have had extremely warm, fruitful and intensive discussions. We have reaffirmed our strong mutual commitment to the strategic partnership that was launched in 2001.

The signing of several bilateral agreements today, and the Joint Statement on the Further Development of the Strategic and Global Partnership between India and Germany will impart a new and substantive momentum to our relations.

We both recognize the long-term potential of Indo-German economic and trade relations. Germany has become our largest trade partner in Europe and the fourth largest globally. I conveyed to the Chancellor that we welcome German investment, particularly in areas of Germany's proven technological strengths.

Science & Technology and cooperation in high technology areas remains an important dimension of our relations. This morning Chancellor Merkel and I launched the Science Express which is symbolic of our longstanding collaboration in this field.

We reviewed prospects for intensifying cooperation in the areas of infrastructure, energy, defence, education, culture and vocational training. We spoke about the need to facilitate people-to-people contacts.

We also discussed regional and global issues.

India and Germany share common values of democracy, rule of law, and fundamental freedoms. We recognize the need to create an equitable international order which reflects contemporary realities, and is conducive to meeting the challenges of poverty and disease. We reaffirmed our common resolve to combat international terrorism, and to work towards an early and balanced outcome of the Doha round of talks.

I conveyed my appreciation to Chancellor Merkel for her leadership and keen interest on the issues of climate change and energy security. I would like to thank Chancellor Merkel for her endorsement of the idea of per capita entitlements, and the need for developed countries to accept convergence of per capita Green House Gas emissions of developing countries with theirs.

I invite Chancellor Merkel to make her comments.

Chancellor Dr. Angela Merkel: Allow me to first of all thank you most warmly, Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh and the whole of the Indian Government, for the very warm and very gracious hospitality extended to me and to the members of the German Delegation. Let me say that we are delighted to be your guests in your country. Let me also tell you that I am firmly convinced that this visit will contribute to further enhancing the strategic partnership between our two countries, a partnership that covers many areas, not only the area of politics but also the economy, business relations and economic cooperation in general.

What fuels our cooperation and what is really the driving force behind this excellent cooperation is particularly the very dynamic economic relationship between our two countries. We envisaged to actually achieve the goal of a 10 billion exchange of goods by the year 2010. I am very gratified to be able to tell you that we have already achieved this volume of trade exchanges at this point in time. So, we have decided to be even more ambitious until 2012 and to double that number by that time. So, we can safely say that business relations, our economic relations indeed are the driving force behind this relationship. I must say that I feel very encouraged by the fact that the Indian Government has actually thrown its full weight behind this economic relationship and behind this partnership in general.

One of the flagships of our cooperation is obviously the cooperation in science and research. We have already embarked on that in the past and we are going to continue that in the future. The Science Express is the very symbol of this very broad-based cooperation between our two countries. You can also see how important this is by the sheer number of agreements and memoranda of understanding that have been signed here just now. We continue to work together with India in the future, particularly in the area of science but also more comprehensively in the overall issue of education.

We would like to continue on the successful cooperation also in the area of development cooperation. We would like to continue over the existing level of development cooperation and further enhance it to include, for example, issues related to climate change, energy efficiency, energy supply and also renewable energies. On this last there are currently new possibilities that are being explored in negotiations between the two Ministries that are in charge on both sides.

Thank you very much for giving us the opportunity to hold this very broad-based, very intensive exchange of views here. I know that we are going to have time later on over dinner to continue these exchanges of views. I would now also like to tell you that I am absolutely convinced that Germany and India can do a lot together and that they want to do a lot together also in the future.

Allow me to add a brief remark. I have already pointed this out to the Prime Minister previously that I was probably going to make this announcement. I have just been informed that Germany has been made hosts for the World Cup Women Soccer that is in 2011. So, a word of congratulations goes out to the team, to my fellow countrymen. I have the assurances of the Prime Minister that he is very happy for Germany for the fact that we have been able to win this World Cup for our country. Let me assure you that we will try to be very good hosts again. I would also like to congratulate here the German Soccer Federation for the efforts that it put into this. I would also like to congratulate the fans of the team in Germany. I am absolutely certain that they will again turn the summer of 2011 into a fairy tale summer for soccer, and this time it is going to be for the women’s team.

Question (German Media – ZDF Television): This is a question addressed to both the Chancellor and to the Prime Minister. The subject of my question is the nuclear deal between the United States and India. Did you address that issue during your conversation? What is your opinion on this, Chancellor? What sort of plans do you have, Prime Minister, on the nuclear deal? We understand that you have certain problems here in India to actually implement that deal, to turn it into a reality. What does this mean, Chancellor, for the German business community? Do you think it will have any impact? Will it open doors or will it rather close it to them?

Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh: I and the Chancellor had a very fruitful discussion on this whole issue of civil nuclear cooperation between India and the international community. I explained to Her Excellency that the 123 agreement that we have signed with the United States is an honourable deal, good for India, good for the world, good for the cause of nonproliferation. We have run into some problems domestically which we are trying to resolve. But as far as our Government is concerned, we remain committed to see that this process is carried forward. For this we need to evolve a broad-based consensus in our country and efforts are on in that direction.

Chancellor Dr. Angela Merkel: We did raise the issue and the Prime Minister explained to me the internal situation in India, and I underlined that from the point of view of Germany we have every interest to see India being committed by and incorporated in the international regimes in this respect to the best extent possible so as to ensure the maximum transparency on that particular issue. We would then hope that the IAEA rules would be abided by India and that out of that would follow obviously the further rules and agreements that are relevant to this issue. One would hope that further progress would be made in this respect on the basis of the IAEA rules. Once that is in place, once that cooperation with the IAEA is in place, then Germany and India could do, I suppose, a lot together on that basis and in the area of the peaceful use of nuclear power. Whether any sort of business activity will arise out of that is up to the business community to decide.

Question (Indian Media – NDTV): I have a question for the Prime Minister. In the last few days more and more senior American officials are speaking out about the need for India to take the next steps on the nuclear deal and to take them quickly. Are you worried that if India does not take the next steps quickly, it would be more difficult for us to get this deal through?

Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh: I have already mentioned that efforts are on to evolve a broad-based national consensus. We are a democracy, and in a democracy ultimately you have to take all those who are supporting you along with you. That process is under way. I would not like to speculate what would be the consequences. There is I think some delay, but we have not I think reached the end of the road.

Question (German Media – DPA): I would like to ask two questions really. As to the genuine and real chances for achieving a permanent seat on an enlarged Security Council, did you address that issue? How do you assess those chances? My second question is directed to the Federal Chancellor. How do you feel looking at the praise that you have garnered today?

Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh: We had a very fruitful discussion on the whole issue of the Security Council reform. As you know, India and Germany are part of the G-4 process. All the four countries who are members of G-4 are convinced that if the Security Council is to reflect the realities of the 21st century, there is need for reform. We recognize that there is a growing support for the reform of the Security Council. But there are still hurdles and our two countries have agreed to work together in this area.

Chancellor Dr. Angela Merkel: Yes, we had an exchange of views on this question of a permanent seat and we are going to continue our cooperation within the G-4 on that particular issue. We have an interest in a reform of the Security Council of the United Nations. We both have an interest in giving our two countries a higher profile within the United Nations through a permanent seat. We are going to continue to be in contact on that issue. We would also have to look at, and that obviously is what presupposes any success in this, whether there is a reform enthusiasm still within the United Nations, whether that reform spirit is again gaining momentum. It seems to have been waning somewhat but, I think, one ought to be optimistic on that particular front.

On the issue of praise, when I receive praise I take it as praise of Germany as a whole. But it is certainly true that I personally feel that I am also strengthened by words of praise in the sense that I feel strengthened to tackle more political problems wherever they may arise.

Question (Indian Media – Indo Asian News Service): This question is addressed to the German Chancellor. People-to-people contacts are at the heart of any strong bilateral relationship. Is Germany going to liberalize its visa regime and immigration rules to allow more Indian businessmen and workers in? Are there any difficult issues in this area?

Chancellor Dr. Angela Merkel: On that allow me to point out the fact that over the past three years we have actually been able to increase the number of Indian students studying in Germany by a factor of five. We are going to continue to work closely together in this respect. There are also many companies in Germany who train young Indians in Germany, for example, Deutsche Bahn is only one of these companies. We are aware of this issue of visa. We do see it. We do see the need also for discussing that because it is certainly true that the expectations on the Indian side have to match the legal situation, the legal system as it exists in our country. There are a number of issues here that simply need to be addressed and need to be overcome because we obviously want to avoid a situation where an Indian entrepreneur wishes to come to Germany to invest there and is hindered by the fact that he or she will not be granted a visa.

* as translated