Erfurt/(dpa/th) - Federal Council President Bodo Ramelow (left) arrived in Chile on Tuesday. The machine with Thuringia's Prime Minister landed at midnight at the airfield in Antofagasta in the north of the country, the State Chancellery announced. He was welcomed by the Ambassador of the Federal Republic, Irmgard Maria Fellner. A bird strike on a Luftwaffe Airbus had meanwhile slowed down the journey from Ramelow to Chile.
The trip to Chile is intended to mark the end of the Thuringian Prime Minister's one-year presidency of the Federal Council. In addition to political appointments, company visits and business talks are also planned until October 15th. At the beginning of November, the Presidency of the Federal Council will go to Hamburg's Mayor Peter Tschentscher (SPD).
The symbolic handing over of the baton took place at the central celebration of the Day of German Unity, which was organized by Thuringia's state capital Erfurt this year. The presidency of the regional chamber changes annually between the prime ministers.
