German Chancellor To Visit In Feb To Talk Trade, Defence & Energy

Tilman Kuban, a member of the Bundestag from the main opposition centre-right Christian Democratic Union, has confirmed in an interview with India Today that Chancellor Olaf Scholz is set to visit India in February. The visit will be the first to India by Scholz, and follows on from Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock's two-day trip in December 2022.

• The talk of a visit comes as the German Foreign Ministry calls for respect for the freedom of the press in India. Following the banning of a BBC documentary viewed as critical of PM Narendra Modi, the Foreign Ministry stated in a briefing that “The constitution (of India) enshrines fundamental rights and freedoms. Freedom of the press and speech are among those. Germany shares these values with our Indian partners. Germany stands up for these values all over the world and which we, of course, discuss with India on regular basis.”
• Kuban will be visiting India in the same month as part of a five-member Bundestag delegation on Trade and Digitalisation organised by the CDU-associated Konrad Adenauer Foundation think tank. On the subject of an India-EU FTA, Kuban stated that "We are trying to emphasise that our system is worth fighting for. In trade issues, we need to stay stronger...India would like to send agricultural goods which would [apply] pressure back home in our markets. Similarly, if a lot of [autos] enter Indian markets from Germany, then it will put pressure on the Indian auto industry,”