7th IGC between India, Germany to be co-chaired by PM Modi and German Chancellor Scholz

The biennial IGC format was launched in 2011 and allows for a comprehensive review of cooperation and identification of new areas of engagement at the Cabinet level. India is among a select group of countries with which Germany has such a mechanism.

The IGC is a unique mechanism that India has with Germany. Under the IGC mechanism, the plenary co-chaired by PM Modi and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is preceded by meeting of focused verticals of Ministers from both sides.

The 7th IGC is expected to have a strong technology focus with the key elements being sustainability and green transition, migration and mobility, and technology and innovation. Increased collaboration in new and emerging technologies is also expected, building on the India-Germany Vision Document released by Chancellor and PM Modi during the former's state visit to India in 2023. In addition, focus will also be on enhancing defence and security cooperation.

This year, India and Germany are also celebrating the 50 years of Science and Technology Cooperation. Under this cooperation, both sides have taken up projects in several areas of global and emerging importance like space research, AI, sustainability, earth and environment sciences and advanced materials.

At the 6th IGC held in Berlin on May 2, 2022, India and Germany signed many agreements focusing on green and sustainable development, green hydrogen, solar and renewable energy, agro-ecology, and forest landscape restoration amongst others. The most significant outcome was the signing of the Green and Sustainable Development Partnership. Under this partnership, German side has committed to provide new and additional funding of 10 billion Euros to India to achieve Paris Climate Goals and SDGs.

In the run-up to the IGC, the German government has released two important India-centric documents. A dedicated India strategy titled 'Focus on India'. This is the first such strategy that the German government has announced on India and it expresses the desire of the Federal Government to improve relations with India with the consensus of all Ministries and Departments.

The German side has also announced a skilled labour strategy centred towards India recently, which aims at improving the mobility of skilled workforce from India to Germany to address the severe shortage of workforce in Germany. This is the first country-specific strategy that Germany has unveiled in this regard.

Germany is one of India's most important partners in the EU. Diplomatic relations were established between the two countries in 1951 and Germany and India have been strategic partners since 2000. Both countries have a shared interest in upholding democratic values, the rules-based international order, and multilateralism, as well as the reform of multilateral institutions. Both sides are also deepening bilateral security and defence cooperation to jointly address global challenges.

The forthcoming visit of Chancellor Scholz for the 7th IGC will be his third visit to India as Chancellor. PM Modi and Chancellor Scholz have met seven times since 2022.

Several institutional arrangements exist between India and Germany to discuss bilateral and global issues of interest. Both countries consult each other and coordinate positions in multilateral fora including the G20 and the UN and support each other on UNSC reforms within the framework of the G4.

In addition to regular meetings of senior defence leadership of both countries, there has also been a significant rise in defence engagements over the last few years. German Frigate Baden-Wuerttemberg and support ship Frankfurt am Main, deployed to the Indo-Pacific from May 2024, will carry out a joint exercise with the Indian Navy in India in the third week of October, followed by a port call in Goa, for which Chancellor Scholz will also be visiting Goa.

INS TABAR made a port call at Hamburg from 17-20 July 2024 and carried out a PASSEX with the German Navy's Anti-Submarine Warfare Helicopter on 04-05 August 2024. The German Air Force participated in the first bilateral exercise, Ex Tarang Shakti-1, with the Indian Air Force from August 8 to August 13, 2024.

As the third and fifth largest economies, respectively, Germany and India share a robust economic and development partnership. Germany is India's largest trading partner in the EU. Trade touched an all-time high of USD 33.33 billion in 2023, a rise of 5.84 per cent (as per figures from Destatis, the Federal Statistical Office of Germany).

Cumulative FDI from Germany to India was USD 14.5 billion from April 2000 to December 2023. More than 2000 German companies are active in India, as per the Indo-German Chamber of Commerce.

Development cooperation has been an important component of bilateral relations for the past 60 years. It was given renewed momentum by the signing of the Green and Sustainable Development Partnership at the 6th IGC. Examples of fruitful collaboration include the Nagpur Metro Rail project, green energy corridor projects, integrated water transport in Kochi, the Solar Energy Partnership and the Partnership on Green Urban Mobility.

India and Germany are also working together on triangular development cooperation by pooling together strengths and experiences in development cooperation in third countries. Projects have been completed in the areas of agriculture, women's entrepreneurship, millet cultivation and postprocessing.

Germany also participated as a partner country in RE-INVEST 2024 in Gandhinagar, where the Indo-German Platform for Investments in Renewable Energies Globally was launched.

Migration and mobility have also become key elements of India-Germany relations. There are approximately 2.5 lakh (December 2023) Indian nationals and persons of Indian origin in Germany. At around 50,000, Indian nationals now account for the largest group of international students in German universities. The Migration and Mobility Partnership Agreement with Germany was signed in December 2022. This is the first MMPA that Germany concluded with any country.

India is the host country for the 18th Asia Pacific Conference of German Business (APK) to be held in New Delhi from October 24-26, 2024. The APK, a biennial event for business leaders, executives and political representatives from Germany and the countries in the Indo-Pacific, is expected to give a further boost to trade and investment ties between the two countries. About 650 top business leaders and CEOs from Germany, India and other countries are expected to participate in the event. (ANI)