|
Gerhard Schröder called on Saudi business leaders to invest more in Germany.
Continuing his tour of Gulf countries, German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder on Monday called on Saudi business leaders to invest more in Germany.Speaking at a German-Saudi economic forum, the chancellor urged his audience to consider Germany -- and especially the country's eastern regions -- as a place to invest their money. "The German economy is definitely waiting for you to become active there as our friends and partners," Schröder said. At the same time, he also expressed his belief that "enormous possibilities" exist for German business in Saudi Arabia. Schröder said Germany had first class engineers and architects that could help to improve Saudi infrastructure. He added that German companies working abroad did a lot to train young local employees. While Schröder's comments were focused on future economic cooperation, a number of German business people were already able to sign treaties totaling â¬18 million ($23.8 million) for telecommunications and consulting services as well as the expansion of an airport. Much larger deals are expected to be finalized when Schröder visits the United Arab Emirates in the coming days. The Saudis and other Arab governments have expressed interest in German defense industry products including armored vehicles, helicopters and submarines. Germany has not delivered notable amounts of military goods to Saudi Arabia since 1991. Addressing human rights Berlin is often accused of putting business ahead of encouraging political reforms in the region. Human rights groups including Amnesty International have urged Schröder talk to his hosts about contentious civil rights issues while in the Islamic kingdom. "The Chancellor can't simply focus on economic relations with Saudi Arabia," Amnesty's Middle East expert Regina Spöttl told the DPA news agency. "The Chancellor should stand up for the abolishment of the death penalty." The German Foreign Ministry has pointed out that Schröder will be addressing the situation of political prisoners and lacking rights for women in Saudi Arabia. He is also sure to raise the latest Middle East peace efforts, stability in Iraq and the ongoing European negotiations with Iran over its nuclear program. After talks with Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah, Schröder praised the "cautious democratization" process under way in the country but said it did "not go far enough." Voters in eastern and southwestern Saudi Arabia will go to the polls in municipal elections on Thursday. While half of all council representatives will be elected, the other half will still be appointed by the authorities. Women cannot vote nor run for election. Celebrating 75 years of friendship Attending celebrations of the 75th anniversary of the German-Saudi friendship treaty in the Saudi capital Riyadh Sunday, Schröder praised efforts encouraging closer ties between Germany and the Arab world. He said Saudi Arabia's recent participation at the Frankfurt Book Fair and Deutsche Welle's Arabic language programming were important elements for intercultural dialogue. "That clearly shows that Germany and the Arab world are making serious efforts to come closer together," said Schröder, who will officially launch DW's Arabic TV service in Kuwait on Monday. "We can be very proud of this." The German-Saudi Friendship treaty was signed in Cairo in 1929 and ratified in 1930. It paved the way for diplomatic and consular ties between the two countries, which first exchanged ambassadors in the late 1930s. After spending two days in Saudi Arabia, Schröder will continue onward to Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, Yemen, Oman and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). It will be his second visit to the region in the space of 18 months. Posted by: TMH 2005-02-28 |
| http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=57645 |