As Germany grapples with the double whammy of an economic slump and political instability — all in the middle of a raging war in Ukraine — German ambassador to India, Philipp Ackermann, participated in a TOI editors’ roundtable to discuss a range of bilateral and global issues. In a freewheeling conversation, he spoke about the implications of Trump’s return for Europe and its likely impact on the war. Ackermann also addressed issues related to the tedious Schengen visa process and Germany’s efforts to attract more skilled professionals from India. Edited excerpts:
Ties With India
■ Bilateral relations are at an all-time high. I have never seen such close and differentiated relations between India and Germany. The new element is migration. And the second one is that Germany has decided to become a stable security partner for India. So, we just got the latest statistics of arms exports and India is No.6 in the list, which is quite remarkable. Ukraine, of course, is No.1 but that’s not a regular arms production exchange. India is almost at the same level as the US…That shows how the German govt sees the Indian partnership and how strategic it considers the Indian partnership to be.
Other than that, we have a very, very strong business connection. We have more than 2,000 German companies in India and not only the big ones, but also small and medium-sized companies who come here to try to unite mechanical production with digital solutions. We expect a growth in bilateral economic relations, not least because we very actively encourage German businesses to go elsewhere than China.
‘We Need Skilled Professionals’
■ Germany is in urgent need of skilled labour. We have changed our laws and I’d say Germany arguably has the most liberal immigration laws now. And that is a big difference between Germany and most other Western countries, including the US. We have one big disadvantage: language. But we have, I think, a certain advantage compared with other countries. And that would lead to an increase in the Indian community in Germany. We have about 260,000 Indians in Germany and that will grow over the next couple of years. We have good cooperation not just with the central govt but also state govts.
On Complex Visa Process
■ I fully understand that the procedure (to get a Schengen visa) is seen as humiliating. (But) in the US, for a long-term visa, they ask me whether I have ever been a member of a terrorist organisation! (Laughs) The Schengen regulations are the same all over. There is no difference between Germany, Luxembourg, Estonia, Spain and Portugal. There are rulings made in Brussels and these rulings are relatively rigid.
Now, let me tell you that we are doing 200,000 visas a year with an increase of 10% to 15% a year. Europe doesn’t have 10-year visas but we have fiveyear visas. We are very generous with long-term, multipleentry visas. I recommend everybody to attach a letter with their application form saying they want a long-term visa. It is not a category that you can click on but if you say you want to go several times, then our visa section is very happy to give you a long-term visa. We will digitise our visa procedure to make it easier. I think in the next year you will see much more progress. And then you should also not forget the waiting period for our visas is four weeks now. We want Indians to come to Europe.
On Indian Democracy
■ I’m convinced that Indian democracy works quite okay. Look at the elections to the Lok Sabha… people know ex actly what they vote for and why. When I talk to a Delhi autowallah, he tells me he votes for (Arvind) Kejriwal in state elections and (Narendra) Modi in national elections. There is a polarisation in India. But look across the world. Finland, Sweden, the Netherlands — (they have) govts with right-wing parties, which we would have never thought possible. So, polarisation is a bit of a global phenomenon… Solutions can only come from inside, not outside. I’m very encouraged by the force of the civil society here.
German Political Crisis
■ After the coalition fell, there is now a very clear path to new elections. So, on Feb 23, we will have our elections, six months ahead of schedule. There are two big parties — the Conservative Party under
a candidate who is running for govt office for the first time, Friedrich Merz, and the current chancellor, Olaf Scholz, who wants to get a second mandate. If you look at the (opinion) polls today, the conservative candidate has about 30-34% support. Social Democrats are in the range of 15-16% and the Greens are a little less, maybe 11-14%. And, then, there’s this right-wing party in Germany, AfD. They are nationwide between 16-18%. But then it is pretty safe to say that they will not play any role in the new govt. There is a firewall in German (politics) — this party cannot be part of any govt.
Trump And Europe
■ I think we have at least a little experience of how our American friends will now govern and we are prepared. There is no doubt that for us times will be more difficult than under Biden, who was very European-oriented and a Germanophile. But I think from what we have seen of Trump, it’s possible to deal with a Trump administration, to find solutions with them.
A Trump-Putin Deal Possible?
■ We would be more than thrilled if this war was over today, rather than tomorrow. It is very costly for everybody. The Russians, I’ve read, are losing up to 1,500 soldiers a day, and I’m not sure about the Ukrainians. It’s a senseless and absurd war. Now, I would say that any deal should, first and foremost, include Ukraine. So, is it possible for us to accept a deal between Trump and Putin that excludes Ukraine? I would say no. I think Trump also will reach out to Ukraine. If he cuts a deal with Russia and Ukraine where both sides can live with or agree with something, why should we not agree to it? The crucial point is the involvement and acceptance of the Ukrainians.
On Competition With China
■ The Germans were always very good with machine production. And what we see in China now, they are good and cheaper. So, in machine production, the Chinese have really caught up big time… German automotive producers really benefited in the last 15-20 years because they sold a lot of cars in China. But that’s not the case anymore. So, we are facing a certain economic crisis.
I wouldn’t call it a complete crisis because we do have a little growth, but the growth is not good enough. And there are many reasons for that. We have growing competition with China and also the US to a certain extent. Another reason, of course, is the energy insecurity in the aftermath of Ukraine. Electricity in Germany is reasonably priced now. It’s not as volatile as it was after the invasion. We are in the middle of an energy transformation where 60% of our electricity is from renewables. Sometimes there’s no wind and no sun, and then the prices go up for an hour and then they go down. So, it’s a new energy system, which is good but is posing some challenges.