Modi’s 4-nation tour

#PrimeMinister #NarendraModi #India #Germany #Spain #Russia #France #politics

As India has close ties with European countries for bilateral cooperation on economic, defence, science and technology, and nuclear fronts, fight against terror, and many more, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be going on a four nation European tour starting today.

He will be first visiting Germany, to meet Chancellor Angela Merkel and will head head the fourth biennial Inter-Governmental Consultations (IGC). India and Germany have more than 23 working groups that are related to climate change, energy, infrastructure and tourism. Germany also supports India’s membership in different export control regimes, including the NSG (Nuclear Suppliers Group).

He will then be meeting Premier Mariano Rajoy in Spain, and Spanish King Felipe VI. Spain’s advanced technology and infrastructure, and a cooperation in counter-terror will be some of the main topics to be discussed.

On May 31, he will be travelling to Russia where he will meet President Vladimir Putin. He will also, for the first time, be attending St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF). Science and technology cooperation and people-to-people contacts are also areas that will come up for discussion during the Modi-Putin meeting.

The final stop will be France, where Modi will meet the newly President-elect Macron, considering that India & France have very strong cooperation in space, civil, nuclear, defence and economy.

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Building a connection with other countries is important, and visiting them is always a good way of showing cooperation. India as a growing nation needs this.

Trump, Merkel air differences

#US #President #Trump #Germany #AngelaMerkel #immigration #refugees

The most telling episode of the visit between Trump and Merkel might have taken place in the Oval office where Merkel asked Trump if he wanted to shake hands for the cameras, but Trump did not respond. Trump, in the past, has accused Angela Merkel for ‘ruining’ Germany by admitting large number of Middle Eastern refugees.

Trump expressed appreciation for Merkel’s assurance that Germany is committed to increasing its military spending. However, there were clearly different views on immigration when Angela Merkel said that efforts to make borders secure and integrate immigrants must include “looking at the refugees as well, giving them opportunities to shape their own lives. The West should help countries who right now are not able to do so.

Read the full article here.

Seriously, What has it come to? Not shaking hands with foreign diplomats, bringing past wiretapping charges on top foreign diplomats done by his own country, spending money and resources on false wiretap claims and being stubborn about it, discrimination , banning refugees, failing to garner support, A really screwed up healthcare plan. Do people even see what all has happened in just two months. How can you even imagine the product at the end of one year rather than at the end of his term.

Ax attack in Dusseldorf train station

#Germany #trainstationattack #axattack #citizen #Dusseldorf

An ax attack left at least seven people injured in the main train station in the city of Dusseldorf. Three of the victims were seriously injured.

The suspect was identified as a 36-year old man who lived in the city of Wuppertal, located about 20 miles from Dusseldorf. He originally moved to Germany from the former Yugoslavia and “apparently has mental issues”.

Special units for crimes was immediately dispatched to the scene. An investigation is underway but there was so far no reason to believe that the incident was terrorism-related.

Authorities mentioned that the attacker had chosen his victims indiscriminately. The attacker later jumped form a nearby bridge following the incident and was arrested later, although he is in a hospital currently due to being severely injured.

Read the full article here.

Steinmeier elected as the new German President

#Germany #Trump #Steinmeier #President #AngelaMerkel #Europe #Politics

Germany’s former foreign minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier was elected as the new head of state on Sunday. He is often called the Germany’s “Anti-Trump” who accused Trump of being a hate preacher.

At 61, Steinmeier regularly polls as Germany’s most popular politician. Social Democrats (SPD), the political party hopes to win against Chancellor Merkel in September elections with their candidate Martin Schulz following this.

Steinmeier received 931 of 1,239 valid votes after Merkel’s conservatives, lacking a strong candidate of their own, agreed to back him to replace incumbent Joachim Gauck, 77, a former pastor from ex-communist East Germany.

Read the full article here.

Donald Trump “I’ve proven to be right”

President-elect Donald Trump called the attacks in Berlin and Ankara as “Terrible” on Wednesday. He also said that, “All along, I’ve been proven to be right. 100% correct. What’s happening is disgraceful.”

Trump has mentioned during one of his election campaigns that he would be willing to issue a temporary ban on Muslims entering the United States as a means of fighting terrorism. However after attracting widespread criticism, he had later rephrased the statement to temporarily suspending immigration from regions deemed as exporting terrorism and where safe vetting cannot be ensured.

Trump also mentioned that he has not talked to President Barack Obama since the Berlin and Ankara attacks. Trump has been critical of Obama because of his reluctance to clearly name Islamist militancy as a threat. Read the full article here.

Truck rams crowd in Berlin Christmas Market!

A massive black truck with Polish license plates ran into a Christmas market filled with revelers in west Berlin on Monday, killing 12 people and injuring 48. The even turned the holiday season in Germany into a national tragedy.

The incident was described by the White House as a ‘terrorist attack‘. It seemed very similar to the French truck assault of Nice in July that had killed 86 people and was claimed by the Islamic State.

The German officials were questioning a male suspect who was arrested several hundred yards from the site and matched a description of the truck driver. The suspect is believed to be a Pakistani national who arrived in February as an asylum seeker. If this suspect is confirmed as the culprit, then the heated debate over opening the door to nearly a million migrants fleeing from the war in Middle East, will seem to rise again and Chancellor Angela Merkel will have to provide assurance to the German people that no such incidents like this will happen in the future.

After the incident, the scene remained a horrific tableau of crushed wood, broken glass and blood. Lying near the truck was a fallen Christmas tree, its star toppled. Read the full article here.

Kindly pray for the victims and wish for them to recover soon!

12-year-old fails in 2 terrorist attacks, Germany

A 12 year old boy, in the western German city of Ludwigshafen planned and tried to execute two terrorist attacks, this month and one last month. His target was a local Christians market on November 26 and the areas near the city hall on December 5.

However, his backpack with explosives was noticed in the attempt and the passerby’s reported to the police, prompting for further investigation.

The boy has dual nationality, German and Iraqi. He is said to be strongly radicalized and could have been even instigated by the Islamic State. Read the full article here.

He is currently being held at the local youth office and won’t be charged because of his age.