Singh, Angela inks four agreements

India and Germany on Tuesday reviewed the security situation in Pakistan and Afghanistan with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh asserting that terrorism will have to be fought "on all fronts and not selectively".Singh and German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who arrived in New Delhi on Tuesday morning, held wide-ranging talks on bilateral, regional and international issues of mutual interest."We discussed the developments in Pakistan and Afghanistan. Terrorism is a serious challenge which will have to be fought on all fronts and not selectively," Singh told a joint press conference with Merkel after the talks.

After the talks, India and Germany signed four agreements for cooperation in vocational education, medical research, science and technology and nuclear physics.
Asked about the use of nuclear energy, Singh said every effort would be made to ensure that all safety norms and generation and utilisation of nuclear energy are world class."Today our nuclear energy is three per cent of our total energy generation. Our capacity is less than 5,000 MW. We want to raise it to 20,000 MW by the year 2020," Singh said.He said if India has to meet the emission targets, the country will have to have a combination of nuclear energy and renewable energy sources.On the selection of new IMF chief, the Prime Minister said he did not discuss the issue with Merkel but favoured "the best available" person regardless of nationality."India's view is well known...the best available person regardless of nationality should be selected for the prestigious post of IMF chief," he said.

Queried about their discussions on UNSC reforms, Singh said both India and Germany were on the same page on the issue and were of the opinion that the body should reflect the contemporary reality of the world. India and Germany are set to take their bilateral trade to 20 billion euros in a year, as the two countries step up economic and technological cooperation.

"It (Germany) is amongst the largest foreign investors in India. Our bilateral trade was more than 15 billion euros last year, and is on course to reach the target of 20 billion euros per year by 2012," Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said after meeting German Chancellor Angela Merkel today.Singh said India wants greater German investment in infrastructure, high technology, energy and basic and applied sciences.India offers a stable and friendly investment climate and a large growing market. I welcome the progress that is being made on the issue of high technology exports from Germany to India. This will benefit both economies," the Prime Minister said.CEOs of top German companies, accompanying Merkel called on Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma after round-table with their Indian counterparts.

"Germany is our strategic partner. The German investments in India are moving close to USD 10 billion.. that makes Germany one of our major partners," Sharma said.

CEOs and senior officials of 20 German companies attended the meeting with Sharma.
They included Siemens CEO Peter Loescher and BASF CEO Kurt Bock.Earlier they met their Indian counterparts under the aegis of CII and Ficci.In the CEOs' roundtable, CII President and Tata Steel Vice Chairman B Muthuraman said more and more Indian firms are acquiring high-quality German technology to meet their growing needs.

"Germany is one of the most preferred investment destinations for Indian companies, especially in automotives, pharmaceuticals, electrical equipment," CII release quoting Muthuraman said.The industry leaders discussed potential cooperation in the areas of small and medium sectors and opportunities in vocational skills, education, infrastructure and renewable energy, Ficci President Harsh C Mariwala said