Schroeder arrives, to hold talks with top leaders

German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder on Wednesday arrived in Delhi on a two-day state visit to further strengthen bilateral ties with India.
 
Schroeder will hold talks with President A P J Abdul Kalam and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

Schroeder was received by Minister of State for External Affairs E Ahamed at the Indira Gandhi International Airport on his arrival.

He is accompanied by German Education and Research Minister Edelgard Bulmahn, Parliamentary State Secretary Ditmar Staffelt and a high-level official, business and media delegation.

The German chancellor will deliver the seventh Rajiv Gandhi Memorial Lecture on 'Peace and Stability in a Globalised
World' at the Rajiv Gandhi Foundation.

The visit is part of annual summit-level interaction between India and Germany, which was institutionalised during Schroeder's last visit to India in October, 2001.

Former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee visited Germany in May, 2003.

Schroeder will also address the Indo-German Economic Forum jointly organised by CII, FICCI and the Indo-German

Chamber of Commerce and inaugurate "Science Circle", a network of Indian and German scholars and research institutions.

An MoU for enhanced cooperation in science and technology between the Department of Science and Technology and Max Planck Institute of Germany will be signed in the presence of Schroeder and Minister of State for Science and Technology Kapil Sibal.

Indian officials said the visit will provide an opportunity for both sides to review progress made on the agenda for the Indo-German partnership in the 21st century, which both sides adopted in May, 2000.