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Former President Bush and Chancellor Kohl Speak at Embassy’s Day of German Unity Celebration
The 16th anniversary of German reunification was plenty of reason to celebrate on Tuesday, and for the guests at the German Ambassador’s Residence in Washington on October 3, German-American friendship was also a reason to celebrate. Former President George H. W. Bush and Chancellor Helmut Kohl, good friends since their days in office, came together here once more to commemorate what Kohl described as some of “the happiest days in all of German history.” President Bush and Chancellor Kohl were the guests of honor at the celebration of Germany’s national holiday, the Day of German Unity, hosted by Ambassador Klaus Scharioth and Saxony Minister President Georg Milbradt at the residence in northwest Washington, D.C. President Bush, in his remarks to the well over 1,000 guests gathered in the terraced garden, honored his “valued colleague and trusted friend,” Helmut Kohl. “We would not be standing here if it were not for his vision, his tenacity, his singular leadership,” Bush said. “Let me simply express my conviction that history will surely rank him as Europe’s greatest leader in the last half of the 20th Century.”
Both leaders recalled the optimism, but also the uncertainty that followed the fall of the Berlin Wall in November 1989, when the reunification of Germany was anything but definite. “During the historic times, it was truly a stroke of luck when the iron curtain slowly lifted that we Germans were able to rely on you, George Bush, who was president of the United States,” Kohl said. “When the opportunity for reunification became clearer and drew closer, and when others were still skeptical and hesitant, it was you and your government who encouraged and supported us and helped us on the road toward unification.” And Kohl won a rousing round of applause with his conclusion: “With all my heart, I wish that German-American friendship will last for a long time. Long live German-American friendship!” For Ambassador Scharioth, the memories were also personal as well as historic. “We are celebrating the day when the painful division of Germany came to an end after almost half a century, the division which separated families—like my own—right down the middle, separated friends, a whole people and a whole country,” Scharioth said. In welcoming Bush, he said: “We will never forget the essential role you played, as we won’t forget the Marshall Plan, we won’t forget the Berlin Airlift, or John F. Kennedy’s ‘Ich bin ein Berliner’ or Ronald Reagan’s ‘Mister Gorbachev, tear down this wall, open up this gate.’ Mr. President, thank you for what you and the American people have done for us and for being our guests of honor tonight.” Chancellor Kohl was the one who suggested that October 3, the day in 1990 when unification of East and West Germany in the Federal Republic of Germany became official, be the country’s national holiday. “You sensed in November 1989 that the vast majority of Germans wanted to be reunited and more importantly, you also sensed that there was a chance to realize our dream,” Scharioth said. Minister President Milbradt paid homage to the people of his state, Saxony, who were with their peaceful protests in Leipzig and elsewhere in 1989 were instrumental in bringing down the Berlin Wall. “They laid the foundations for a united Germany, free and democratic,” Milbradt said. “On these foundations, the architects of German unity could build a house—a house of freedom and the rule of law.” Saxony was the main supporter of the celebration, and Milbradt expressly thanked sponsor AMD, recognizing the California-based company as one of those that have contributed to Saxony’s success since reunification. Speeches Also Available as Podcast
October 4, 2006 Links
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