Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, May 2: Emphasising that India always supported peace and want immediate cessation of hostilities, the Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Monday that no country could emerge victorious in the current Russia – Ukraine conflict and all would only suffer losses.
Addressing a joint press event with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Berlin, Modi, who arrived in Germany on Monday on the first day of his three-nation tour of Europe, said right from the start of Ukraine war, India had been calling for immediate cessation of hostilities and stressed that talks were the only solution to resolve the dispute.
“We believe that there will be no winner in this war and all will suffer losses. Therefore, we are on the side of peace,” he said. “Due to the disturbance caused by the Ukraine crisis, oil prices are sky rocketing, there is a shortage of food grains and fertilizers as a result of which every family in the world has been burdened,” he said. Modi said the effect of this on developing and poor countries would be much more. He also said India was also concerned about the humanitarian consequences of the conflict.
On his part, Scholz said Russia has violated the UN charter by attacking Ukraine. He said he has also invited Prime Minister Modi for G-7 summit in Germany.
Earlier, Modi and Scholz co-chaired the sixth India-Germany Inter-Governmental Consultations on Monday afternoon. The two leaders held a one-on-one discussion before the delegation-level talks. “The discussions covered key areas of bilateral cooperation, under the overall strategic partnership, as well as regional and global developments,” read a communique to the media released after the meet. The two leaders reviewed the full range of bilateral ties including giving an impetus to trade as well as cultural linkages, it said.
“Among democratic nations, India, Germany share several common values… I am happy that my first foreign visit of 2022 is happening in Germany. My first telephonic conversation with any foreign leader had happened with my friend Chancellor Olaf Scholz. Holding of the IGC shows how much importance we place in our strategic ties,” Modi said.
Scholz, who invited Modi for the upcoming G-7 summit in Germany, said India and Germany had decided to set up green hydrogen taskforce. “India is among our very important partners here. The world can only develop well if we are clear as to the fact that future relations in the world will be characterised and marked by many countries, not by a few powerful countries,” Scholz said. He said India was committed to quick progress in free trade agreement negotiations with the European Union.
Later in the day, the IGC plenary session would be followed by a high-level roundtable where Modi and Scholz will hold interactions with top business leaders from both nations. Many ministers from both sides participated in the IGC meet. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and National Security Advisor Ajit Doval were part of the Indian delegation. This was Modi’s first meeting with Scholz after he assumed the office of the Chancellor in December 2021.
Modi had landed in Germany early Monday morning on the first leg of his three-nation tour. “I am confident this visit will boost the friendship between India and Germany,” he tweeted in English and German soon after he reached. “It was early morning in Berlin yet several people from the Indian community came by. Was wonderful connecting with them. India is proud of the accomplishments of our diaspora,” read a second tweet from the Prime Minister.
Modi was received by Chancellor Scholz in a ceremonial welcome at the Federal Chancellery in Berlin upon his arrival for talks. He was accorded the Guard of Honour at the forecourt of the Federal Chancellery in Berlin. Launched in 2011, IGC is a unique biennial mechanism which allows the two governments to coordinate on a wide spectrum of bilateral issues.
The two leaders are expected to exchange views on strategic, regional and global developments. “PM @narendramodi and @Bundeskanzler Olaf Scholz begin bilateral discussions. This is their first engagement since Chancellor Scholz assumed office in December 2021. The momentum of high level exchanges with our Strategic Partner continues,” Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said.
In his departure statement in Delhi earlier, Modi had said his visit to Berlin will be an opportunity to hold detailed bilateral discussions with Chancellor Scholz, whom he met at G20 last year in his previous capacity as Vice-Chancellor and Finance Minister. “I look forward to exchanging views with Chancellor Scholz on strategic, regional and global developments that concern us both,” Modi had said ahead of his visit.
In 2021, India and Germany commemorated 70 years of the establishment of diplomatic relations and have been strategic partners since 2000, Modi said. Germany is India’s largest trading partner in Europe with a bilateral trade of over $21 billion.
Modi is also scheduled to interact with the Indian diaspora in Germany. The country is home to a thriving Indian diaspora of over 200 thousand. The visit will chart the future course for deepening Indo-German ties, the MEA said.
The PM was given a grand welcome at Berlin’s iconic Brandenburg Gate by the members of the Indian community after he arrived at the German capital on the first leg of his three-nation Europe trip that will also take him to Denmark and France.