Delhi, July 13, 2012: Germany's Ambassador to India Mr Michael Steiner presented his credentials to the President of India Smt Pratibha Devisingh Patil in a ceremony at the Rashtrapati Bhavan today.

Ambassador Michael Steiner said, "In the last 60 years of diplomatic relations, Germany and India have become important strategic partners on the global stage. Our friendship and trust has grown manifold and it will be my endeavour to take this partnership to new heights during my time in India."

Prior to this posting, Ambassador Steiner was the German Government's Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan and coordinated the preparation of the Bonn II conference on Afghanistan, which was held in December 2011.

A veteran in foreign and security policy, Ambassador Steiner acted as the NSA to the Federal Chancellor of Germany Gerhard Schroeder from 1998 to 2001. He was Head of the UN Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) between 2002 and 2003.

Ambassador Steiner previously also served as German Ambassador to the office of the United Nations in Geneva, Italy and the Czech Republic. Amongst other assignments, he represented Germany as Member of the International Contact Group as well as Head of the Special Task Force for Peace Efforts in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

For his full CV, high-res photos and further info, log on to: www.india.diplo.de/ambassador