DW: This is your third trip to Africa as German president – you have previously visited Ghana, the Gambia, South Africa and Botswana. President Steinmeier: It is different because it won't be my first visit to Ethiopia [having visited the country in 2014 as Germany's foreign minister]. The interview took place in the Bellevue Palace in Berlin, the official residence of the German federal presidentAs German president, you are returning to a 'new Ethiopia'. During your visit, you will also hold talks with the African Union (AU). For this reason, in the past I have understood the criticism of the African Union but I also said that the African Union can't move things in the right direction in African nations if its members haven't given it the appropriate authority.

Source: Ethiopian News January 25, 2019 09:00 UTC