President Piñera in Hamburg: "Germany has much to offer us”
During a visit to the port city of Hamburg, the main gateway for Chilean exports to Germany, President Piñera highlighted the progress made towards deepening the commercial ties and cooperation between the two countries. Tonight he will speak about Chile’s potential before 400 German businesspeople.
On a visit to Hamburg as part of his official tour through Europe, President Sebastián Piñera on Thursday highlighted Germany’s progress in the areas of technology, science, innovation and education, and underlined the contribution that this country can make to Chile.
“It has much to offer us in terms of modernizing our power grid, improving our educational system, and helping us modernize our State”, said the President, after visiting the port located on the River Elbe, along with First Lady Cecilia Morel, Foreign Minister Roberto Ampuero, and the entourage of congress members and business leaders accompanying him.
The President also visited the head office of the shipping company Hapag-Lloyd A.G. and had lunch with its senior executives.
The President took the opportunity to highlight the agreements and commitments that were reached during the tour that will allow “Chile to strengthen its capacity to grow, create employment and generate opportunities”, he said.
Along the same line, he expressed his appreciation for the meetings held with French President Emmanuel Macron, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and German Chancellor Merkel, which were positive and productive for Chile.
The Economy Minister of Hamburg, Frank Horch, thanked the President for his visit and said that commercial ties between both countries have existed for many years. “The time has come for a closer collaboration”, he said. “I hope that this visit to Hamburg has made you feel at home and that a good collaboration is established between our countries”, he concluded.
Chile’s economic potential
President Piñera ended his 12-hour visit to Hamburg with a presentation before 400 German businesspeople of the Business Association for Latin America. He spoke of Chile’s potential and extended an invitation to innovate, promote technology and invest in Chile to foster growth and create more jobs and opportunities for development.
"The best way to achieve development is to unleash the forces of freedom”, said the President, who emphasized “the enormous opportunities we have in mining, non-conventional energy, modern export-oriented agriculture, technology and food industries”.
Germany is Chile’s most important trade partner in Europe, with Hamburg serving as the major gateway for Chilean exports, and is one of the main investors in Chile.