German Chancellor Dr. Angela Merkel has been nominated for Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace, Disarmament and Development for the year 2013. The International Jury for the Prize was chaired by the Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh, which made this announcement today. Dr. Merkel has been nominated for her exemplary leadership in Europe and the world during the financial crises, her commitment to universal peace and disarmament and her leadership role in strengthening productive and mutually beneficial relations with India and other developing countries.

Raised in what was then East Germany and starting life as a research scientist after earning her Doctorate in Chemistry, Dr. Merkel rose to become in 2005, the first woman to be elected as Chancellor of Germany. Dr. Merkel’s long years in office have seen her play a vital role in global affairs and especially, in matters relating to the global economy during the recent crises years. She has been an advocate of a strong trans-Atlantic partnership, a votary of global peace and disarmament and a voice of reason and restraint on the crises in West Asia. She has been a strong supporter of close relations with India and her Joint Declaration with the Indian Prime Minister in 2006, greatly strengthened Indo-German relations leading to inter-governmental consultations during her state visit to India in 2011, and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s visit to Berlin in 2013, during which German participation in the ambitious Green Energy Corridors Project, was finalized.