Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday met Angela Merkel in Rome on the sidelines of the G20 Summit and praised the German Chancellor for her immense contributions in strengthening the strategic bilateral ties.
PM Modi and Merkel held wide-ranging and fruitful talks on the strong bilateral relations and reaffirmed their commitment to maintain the close strategic partnership.
PM Modi, who is in Rome at the invitation of his Italian counterpart Mario Draghi to attend the G20 summit, was accompanied by External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla and other officials during his meeting with Merkel.
"Chancellor Merkel has made an immense contribution in strengthening Indo-German relations. Delighted to meet her today, after a long time, in Rome for a wide-ranging and fruitful conversation," PM Modi tweeted.
Merkel, 67, who is stepping down after 16 years at the helm of the largest economy in Europe, has led the country safely through the global financial crisis and the coronavirus pandemic. Under her watch, bilateral ties with India has made significant strides.
"PM @narendramodi and Chancellor Merkel met on the sidelines of the Rome @g20org Summit. There were extensive deliberations on India-Germany relations. The strong friendship between the two nations augurs well for the well-being of our planet," the Ministry of External Affairs said in a tweet.
"Reaffirmed our commitment to maintain the close Strategic Partnership with Germany," it said in another tweet.
On the sidelines of the G20 summit, Prime Minister Modi interacted with several world leaders, including US President Joe Biden, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, French President Emmanuel Macron, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and South Korean President Moon Jae-in among others.
Italy has been holding the presidency of the G20 since December last year.
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