Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday warmly welcomed German Chancellor Friedrich Merz to Sabarmati Ashram in Ahmedabad, marking the German leader's first official visit to India since taking office.
Merz, who arrived in Ahmedabad earlier today, is scheduled to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi later in the day, marking a significant milestone in India-Germany relations as both nations mark 75 years of diplomatic relations and 25 years of their Strategic Partnership.
"India is a key partner for Germany. This strategic partnership has grown over the years. India is also a very important partner in defence," Ackermann told ANI.
Merz will be on an official visit to India on January 12-13 at the invitation of Prime Minister Modi. This will be Merz's first official visit to India.
German Ambassador to India, Philipp Ackermann called upon Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh. They held discussions on bilateral security and defence issues, the Spokesperson of the Ministry of Defence said on Thursday.
BJP MP and former Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai slammed Rahul Gandhi's remarks during his visit to Germany, alleging that the Congress leader has made it a habit to criticise and degrade Indian institutions and democracy.
Germany on Monday committed about EUR 1.3 billion in India, primarily in the form of concessional loans, across the key areas of climate and energy, sustainable urban development, green urban mobility, and sustainable management of natural resources.
Hina Bano (58') scored the only goal for India. Lena Frerichs (5'), Annika Schonhoff (52') and Martina Reisenegger (59') got on the scoresheet for Germany
With India registering 8.2 per cent GDP growth in Q2 of 2025-26, German Ambassador to India Philipp Ackermann has said the numbers are "very impressive" and with a growing market, India will be an even more interesting country to invest in and "a big, stable partner in the region".
The meeting was co-chaired by Vinod Bahade, Joint Secretary (Counter Terrorism) in the Ministry of External Affairs of India and Konrad Arz von Straussenburg, Director, Directorate-General for International Order, United Nations and Arms Control of Germany.
During the meeting, held in Berlin, Germany, from November 18 to November 20, the delegation focused on strengthening collaboration across three key areas -- integration of traditional medicine into public health systems, establishing reimbursement pathways to improve patient access, and enh