By RAJENDRA BAJPAI
NEW DELHI, JUNE 2, REUTER = Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi hopes to enlist West German investment for India’s modernization drive during a four nation tour beginning this week,
Gandhi leaves New Delhi on Saturday for Syria, West Germany, the United States and Hungary, with his main emphasis to seek investment capital on a two day West German visit from dune 6.
‘A West German embassy spokesman in New Delhi said Gandhi will deliver a major address to a group consisting mainly of businessmen and also meet the country’s top industrialists.
Vehicle manufacturer Daimler Benz, already collaborating =with an Indian Company, and Telecommunications; Giant Siemens will be among the German firms approached by Gandhi.
India’s two way trade with West Germany last year totaled 4.8 billion deutsche marks (2.8 billion dollars).
The two countries also have more than 2,000 joint ventures in India, the largest by any country after the United States and Britain.
Bonn’s ambassador to New Delhi Konrad Seitz told reporters last week the visit will give a “final push” to increased cooperation between the two countries.
Earlier this year, New Delhi hosted a huge exhibition of high-tech industrial products from Germany in which more than 250 companies took part.
The two countries are also expected to sign an agreement on West German resistance of 700 million deutsche marks (411 million dollars) as well as expanding and modernizing a steel plant in Rourkelh in Orissa state.
Gandhi will begin his tour with a two day visit to Syria to meet President Hafez Al Assad, official sources in Damascus said the two leaders would discuss the Middle East and bilateral issues.
Diplomatic sources in New Delhi said Gandhi, on the visit Syrian visit by an Indian leader in 10 years, and Assad were also certain to discuss the Palestinian uprising in the Israeli occupied territories as well as the situate Beirut.
India is a strong supporter of the Palestinian cause and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) maintains a’ ‘diplomatic post in New Delhi.
Gandhi will also visit New York from June 8 to 10 to address a special session of the United Nations General Assembly on disarmament and then fly to Budapest for talks with Hungary’s new leader Karoly Grosz.
The two leaders will look at prospects of expanding economic ties. Hungary is one of the few countries to import the Indian made Maruti Mani car which is manufactured outside New Delhi in collaboration with the Japanese Automaker Suzuki.
Article extracted from this publication >> June 10, 1988
