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Saudi King Abdullah holds talks with Germany’s foreign minister, tours Berlin | ASHARQ AL-AWSAT English Archive 2005 -2017
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German Chancellor Angela Merkel talks to Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah in Berlin, Germany, Nov. 8, 2007 (AP)


German Chancellor Angela Merkel talks to Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah in Berlin, Germany, Nov. 8, 2007 (AP)

German Chancellor Angela Merkel talks to Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah in Berlin, Germany, Nov. 8, 2007 (AP)

BERLIN (Agencies) – Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah toured Berlin’s famed Brandenburg Gate on Thursday, following a meeting with Germany’s foreign minister on the second day of his official visit here.

King Abdullah held talks with Chancellor Angela Merkel and President Horst Koehler following his arrival in Berlin on Wednesday.

The king met Thursday with German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, who recently returned from a trip to the Middle East. Steinmeier later signed a tax agreement with his Saudi counterpart, Prince Saud al Faisal, as well as a declaration of intent to hold regular foreign policy consultations.

Later in the day, Abdullah toured downtown Berlin, including the Brandenburg Gate, which stood for decades on the eastern side of the Wall that divided the city.

The king’s visit is part of a European tour that already has taken him to Britain, where he discussed terrorism and the Middle East peace process with Prime Minister Gordon Brown, and the Vatican where he met with Pope Benedict XVI.

German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, right talks to Saudi Arabian Finance Minister Ibrahim bin Abdullaziz bin Abdullah Al-Assaf in Berlin, Nov. 8, 2007 (AP)

German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, right talks to Saudi Arabian Finance Minister Ibrahim bin Abdullaziz bin Abdullah Al-Assaf in Berlin, Nov. 8, 2007 (AP)

Klaus Wowereit, mayor of Berlin, right, talks to Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah, left, in front of the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, Germany, Nov. 8, 2007 (AP)

Klaus Wowereit, mayor of Berlin, right, talks to Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah, left, in front of the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, Germany, Nov. 8, 2007 (AP)