German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said he was pleased that India and Germany saw the goal of focusing on the two nations’ goal of doubling their trade volume as realistic.
He made this remarks at a press conference with his Indian counterpart Subrahmanyam Jaishankar after they held bilateral talks on trade, security, and global challenges.
This came as Wadephul traveled to the Indian capital Delhi on his second and final day of his two-day official visit to the country.
India and Germany’s bilateral trade reached just under €31 billion (around $36 billion) in 2024, according to provisional German government statistics, putting the world’s most populous country only 23rd overall in Germany’s list of trade partners.
However, Wadephul said that opportunities were presenting themselves, saying that India and the EU might be able to reach a free trade deal in the coming months if ongoing negotiations progress positively.
While others were erecting trade barriers, he said, without explicitly mentioning the Trump White House that just put 50% tariffs on Indian imports, that Germany and India should seek to lower them.
On his part, Jaishankar said that negotiations with the EU needed to be accelerated, as the two sides seek to overcome sticking points on their core priorities. “We are counting on your support,” he said to Wadephul, who had also held talks with Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal earlier on Wednesday.
The initial goal was to complete the process by the end of this year, but both sides have been digging their heels in.
The EU is pushing for reduced import duties on cars — surely an area where Germany has a strong opinion — and on dairy produce, as well as Indian commitments to stricter climate and labor standards.
India, meanwhile, is seeking to ensure protection for its farmers, to avoid rigid environmental standards and to retain control over potential legal disputes.
However, both parties to the negotiation have fresh impetus to reach an agreement that neither Minister explicitly mentioned on Wednesday — the US imposing altered tariffs and duties on their bilateral trade in the past few weeks.
Tump’s new 50% tariff on Indian imports came into effect last week, while the EU and US struck a deal on somewhat less elevated duties shortly before that.
The EU has, however, also recently issued fresh sanctions against India for one of the same reasons Trump’s White House gave, namely India’s continued status as a core consumer of Russian oil amid the invasion of Ukraine.
In the capital on Wednesday, Wadephul visited a prestigious school to engage in some sporting diplomacy.
Wadephul’s tour of Delhi, and of Bengaluru on the previous day, also incorporated cultural and business appointments.
The Christian Democrat politician visited a Mercedes-Benz research and development facility in Bengaluru, posing for photos in front of a luxury Maybach limousine.
He also visited the Indian Institute of Science in Bengaluru, known as India’s high-tech industry center, and the offices of German commercial software giant SAP in the city.
Wadephul Urged To Visit Pakistan
Meanwhile, back in Germany, Green party Co-chairman Felix Banaszak challenged Wadephul to remain in the region longer than scheduled.
Banaszak called on the Foreign Minister to move on to neighboring Pakistan and strike a deal to prevent Afghans sheltering in the country being repatriated and to assure they could soon travel to Germany.
“For two weeks now, more than 200 people deported from Pakistan, many of them women and children, are sheltering in a Kabul safe house provided by the GIZ [Germany’s main development agency, the Society for International Cooperation]. They’re afraid for their lives.”
Felix Banaszak
The issue is particularly dear to the Greens as they held the Foreign Ministry in the previous federal government, which offered asylum to a number of Afghans who had assisted German troops or NGOs prior to western forces leaving the country and the Taliban sweeping back to power in 2022.
The current government had been delaying the process, saying it wanted to individually vet the people assured of asylum before allowing them entry — but a series of lawsuits and news of the individuals being detained or sent back to Afghanistan has put increased pressure on Berlin to act in recent weeks.
Wadephul said in India that he had spoken to his Pakistani counterpart, Muhammad Ishaq Dar, about the issue, and also received assurances that Pakistan would be willing to take people back from Afghanistan, on the condition they would eventually move on to Germany.
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