PM Modi holds 'fruitful' talks with German Chancellor Scholz

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday held fruitful talks with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on the sidelines of the G-20 summit here and the two leaders examined ways to expand bilateral economic engagement and defence collaboration.This is the third time that Modi and Scholz have met this year.The first meeting between the two leaders took place during Modis visit to Berlin on May 2 for the 6th India-Germany Inter-Governmental Consultations IGC.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday held ''fruitful'' talks with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on the sidelines of the G-20 summit here and the two leaders examined ways to expand bilateral economic engagement and defence collaboration.

This is the third time that Modi and Scholz have met this year.

The first meeting between the two leaders took place during Modi's visit to Berlin on May 2 for the 6th India-Germany Inter-Governmental Consultations (IGC). It was followed by Modi's visit to Schloss Elmau in Germany, as partner country for the G7 Summit at Chancellor Scholz's invitation. In a tweet, Modi said he was ''delighted'' to meet the German Chancellor. ''Delighted to meet Chancellor Scholz. This is our third meeting this year and we built on the strong ground covered during the Inter Governmental Consultations held earlier. We discussed ways to boost economic ties, defence collaboration and other important issues,'' he tweeted.

The Prime Minister's Office described the talks as ''fruitful''.

''A fruitful meeting between PM @narendramodi and Chancellor Scholz was held on the sidelines of the G-20 Summit in Bali. The talks covered different subjects aimed at furthering India-Germany friendship, particularly in key areas such as trade, finance and security,'' PMO India tweeted.

In a statement, the Ministry of External Affairs said Modi and Scholz discussed the wide range of bilateral cooperation between India and Germany, which entered a ''new phase'' with the signing of the partnership on green and sustainable development during the IGC. ''They also agreed to deepen trade and investment ties and further increase cooperation in the areas of defence and security, migration and mobility and infrastructure,'' it said. ''Both leaders agreed to enhance cooperation and coordination in multilateral forums including G20 and the UN,'' the MEA added. In 2021, India and Germany commemorated 70 years of the establishment of diplomatic relations and have been strategic partners since 2000.