German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who is on a visit to India got a digital welcome with Minister Narendra Modi tweeting “Namaste” in welcome as German Chancellor Angela Merkel landed in New Delhi on Sunday night, Oct 04, on a three-day visit. A wide range of issues including security and defence, with special focus on boosting trade ties are to be discussed between the two G-4 member states.

Namaste Chancellor Merkel! Warm welcome to you & the delegation. I look forward to fruitful discussions & strengthening India-Germany ties.

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) October 4, 2015

Germany is the only country with which India conducts these bi-annual joint cabinet meetings. 

Merkel is accompanied by a large delegation comprising six cabinet ministers, and businesspersons, and will also be visiting Bengaluru on Oct 06 before heading back. Modi will also travel to Bengaluru.

India-Germany bilateral trade is currently pegged at around $18 billion

This is Ms Merkel’s first visit to India since the Narenda Modi government came to power. The leaders met in April when PM Modi visited Germany, where he sought to draw more investment towards his “Make in India” campaign. Both leaders are also likely to exchange views on regional and global issues including climate change.

“The prime minister has a very ambitious economic development program for India and Germany intends to contribute to it and support it,” Merkel said, mentioning agriculture, economy, defense and internal security as some of the areas in which the two countries could cooperate.

Germany is India’s largest trading partner in the European Union and the seventh-largest foreign investor in India.

But for Germany, Europe’s largest economy, India last year ranked just 25th on the list of countries with which it does business.