PM Najib visits port city in Germany

BERLIN: Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak (pix) will be visiting Wismar, a port city in the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, which is about 200km from the capital, Berlin.

Mecklenburg-Vorpommern is the sixth largest German state by area and the most thinly populated state.

Upon his arrival, the Prime Minister and his wife Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor will be welcomed by the state's Minister President Erwin Sellering and his wife Britta Sellering.

He will later head to Wismar, where Genting Hong Kong Ltd is managing three shipyards it acquired in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern last year for RM1.04 billion.

Genting has since renamed the shipyards as MV Werften and will focus on building large new cruise ships.

According to reports, MV Werften will deliver the first of four luxury Crystal River ships in 2017, the first of a series of 20,000 gross tonnage Crystal Endeavour Class polar expedition yachts in 2018 and the first of a series of 201,000 gross tonnage Star Cruises Global Class cruise ships by 2020.

The visit to Wismar and the port is the last leg of the Prime Minister's official visit to Germany, which is his first on the invitation of German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

Wismar has been included in the Unesco list of World Heritage Sites since 2002, together with the historical core of Stralsund, which was founded in the 13th century. — Bernama