Hans-Dietrich Genscher

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Hans-Dietrich Genscher
Federal Minister of the Interior
In office
22 October 1969 – 16 May 1974
ChancellorWilly Brandt
Preceded byErnst Benda
Succeeded byWerner Maihofer
Member of the Bundestag for North Rhine-Westphalia
In office
19 September 1965 – 26 October 1998
ConstituencyFDP List
Personal details
Born(1927-03-21)21 March 1927
Free Democratic Party of Germany (1952–2016)
Other political
affiliations		Nazi Party (until 1945)
Liberal Democratic Party of Germany (GDR) (1946–1952)
Spouses
Luise Schweitzer
​
​
(m. 1958; div. 1966)​
Barbara Genscher
​
(m. 1969)​
Alma mater
OccupationPolitician
Signature
Websitegenscher.de

Hans-Dietrich Genscher (21 March 1927 – 31 March 2016) was a German statesman and a member of the liberal

Federal Republic of Germany. In 1991 he was chairman of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe
(OSCE).

A proponent of Realpolitik, Genscher has been called "a master of diplomacy".[1] He is widely regarded as having been a principal "architect of German reunification".[2] In 1991, he played a pivotal role in international diplomacy surrounding the breakup of Yugoslavia by successfully pushing for international recognition of Croatia, Slovenia and other republics declaring independence, in an effort to halt "a trend towards a Greater Serbia".[3] After leaving office, he worked as a lawyer and international consultant. He was President of the German Council on Foreign Relations and was involved with several international organisations, and with former Czech President Václav Havel, he called for a Cold War museum to be built in Berlin.

Biography

Early life

Genscher was born on 21 March 1927 in

war, he and his fellow soldiers became members of the Nazi Party due to a collective application (Sammelantrag) by his Wehrmacht unit. He later said he was unaware of it at the time.[6]

Late in the war, Genscher was deployed as a soldier in General

Halle and Leipzig (1946–1949) and joined the East German Liberal Democratic Party (LDPD) in 1946.[8]

Political career

In 1952, Genscher

Bremen. During these early years after the war, Genscher continuously struggled with illness. From 1956 to 1959 he was a research assistant of the FDP parliamentary group in Bonn. From 1959 to 1965 he was the FDP group managing director, while from 1962 to 1964 he was National Secretary of the FDP.[5]

In

Chancellor Willy Brandt.[5]

In 1974 he became foreign minister and

vice chancellor, both posts he would hold for 18 years.[5] From 1 October 1974 to 23 February 1985 he was Chairman of the FDP. It was during his tenure as party chairman that the FDP switched from being the junior member of social-liberal coalition to being the junior member of the 1982 coalition with the CDU/CSU. In 1985 he gave up the post of national chairman.[10] After his resignation as Foreign Minister, Genscher was appointed honorary chairman of the FDP in 1992.[11]

Federal Minister of the Interior

After the federal election of 1969 Genscher was instrumental in the formation of the social-liberal coalition of chancellor Willy Brandt and was on 22 October 1969 appointed as federal minister of the interior. In 1972, while minister for the interior, Genscher rejected Israel's offer to send an Israeli special forces unit to Germany to deal with the Munich Olympics hostage crisis. A flawed rescue attempt by German police forces at Fürstenfeldbruck air base resulted in a bloody shootout, which left all eleven hostages, five terrorists, and one German policeman dead. Genscher's popularity with Israel declined further when he endorsed the release of the three captured attackers following the hijacking of a Lufthansa aircraft on 29 October 1972.[5][12]

In the SPD–FDP coalition, Genscher helped shape Brandt's policy of deescalation with the communist East, commonly known as Ostpolitik, which was continued under chancellor Helmut Schmidt after Brandt's resignation in 1974.[10] He would later be a driving factor in continuing this policy in the new conservative-liberal coalition under Helmut Kohl.[9]

Vice Chancellor and Federal Foreign Minister

In the negotiations on a coalition government of SPD and FDP following the 1976 elections, it took Genscher 73 days to reach agreement with Chancellor Helmut Schmidt.[13]

As Foreign Minister, Genscher stood for a policy of compromise between East and West, and developed strategies for an active policy of détente and the continuation of the East–West dialogue with the USSR. He was widely regarded a strong advocate of negotiated settlements to international problems.[14] As a popular story on Genscher's preferred method of shuttle diplomacy has it, "two Lufthansa jets crossed over the Atlantic, and Genscher was on both".[15]

George H. W. Bush and Genscher (21 November 1989)

Genscher was a major player in the negotiations on the text of the

General Assembly of the United Nations in New York City accepted Genscher's proposal of an anti-terrorism convention in New York,[16]
which was set among other things, to respond to demands from hostage-takers under any circumstances.

Genscher was one of the FDP's driving forces when, in 1982, the party switched sides from its coalition with the SPD to support the

CSU in their Constructive vote of no confidence to have incumbent Helmut Schmidt replaced with opposition leader Helmut Kohl as Chancellor. The reason for this was the increase in the differences between the coalition partners, particularly in economic and social policy. The switch was controversial, not least in his own party.[17]

At several points in his tenure, he irritated the governments of the United States and other allies of Germany by appearing not to support Western initiatives fully. "During the Cold War, his penchant to seek the middle ground at times exasperated United States policy-makers who wanted a more decisive, less equivocal Germany", according to Tyler Marshall.

Reagan Administration questioned whether Germany was straying from the Western alliance and following a program of its own.[19]

In 1984, Genscher became the first Western foreign minister to visit

1986 Berlin discotheque bombing, a tragedy which U.S. officials blamed on the government of Muammar Gaddafi.[20]

Genscher's proposals frequently set the tone and direction of foreign affairs among Western Europe's democracies.

Edouard Balladur, France's finance minister, and Giuliano Amato,[21] circulating a memorandum to that effect.[22]

Genscher retained his posts as foreign minister and vice chancellor through German reunification and until 1992 when he stepped down for health reasons.[23]

Reunification efforts

Genscher in the GDR, 1990

Genscher is most respected for his efforts that helped spell the end of the Cold War, in the late 1980s when Communist eastern European governments toppled, and which led to German reunification. During his time in office, he focused on maintaining stability and balance between the West and the Soviet bloc. From the beginning, he argued that the West should seek cooperation with Communist governments rather than treat them as implacably hostile; this policy was embraced by many Germans and other Europeans.[19]

Genscher had great interest in European integration and the success of German reunification. He soon pushed for effective support of political reform processes in Poland and Hungary. For this purpose, he visited Poland to meet the chairman of Solidarity Lech Wałęsa as early as January 1980. Especially from 1987 he campaigned for an "active relaxation" policy response by the West to the Soviet efforts. In the years before German reunification, he made a point of maintaining strong ties with his birthplace Halle, which was regarded as significant by admirers and critics alike.[24]

When thousands of East Germans sought refuge in West German embassies in

GDR. In the embassy courtyard thousands of East German citizens had assembled. They were trying to travel to West Germany, but were being denied permission to travel by the Czechoslovak government at the request of East Germany. He announced that he had reached an agreement with the Communist Czechoslovak government that the refugees could leave: "We have come to you to tell you that today, your departure ..." (German: "Wir sind zu Ihnen gekommen, um Ihnen mitzuteilen, dass heute Ihre Ausreise ..."). After these words, the speech was drowned in cheers.[26]

With his fellow foreign ministers

German-Polish Border Treaty on the establishment of the Oder–Neisse line as Poland's western border. Meanwhile, he strongly endorsed the plans of the Bush Administration to assure continued U.S. influence in a post-Cold War Europe.[30]

Post-reunification

In 1991, Genscher successfully pushed for Germany's recognition of the Republic of Croatia in the Croatian War of Independence shortly after JNA entered Vukovar.[31] After Croatia and Slovenia had declared independence, Genscher concluded that Yugoslavia could not be held together, and that republics that wanted to break from the Serbian-dominated federation deserved quick diplomatic recognition. He hoped that such recognition would stop the fighting.[19] The rest of the European Union was subsequently pressured to follow suit soon afterward.[32] The UN Secretary-General Javier Pérez de Cuéllar had warned the German Government, that a recognition of Slovenia and Croatia would lead to an increase in aggression in the former Yugoslavia.

At a meeting of the

chemical weapons against civilians and condoning genocide against the Kurds.[33]

During the Gulf War, Genscher sought to deal with Iraq after other Western leaders had decided to go to war to force it out of Kuwait. Germany made a substantial financial contribution to the allied cause but, citing constitutional restrictions on the use of its armed forces, provided almost no military assistance.[19] In January 1991, Germany sent Genscher on a state visit to Israel and followed up with an agreement to provide the Jewish state with $670 million in military aid, including financing for two submarines long coveted by Israel, a battery of Patriot missiles to defend against Iraqi missiles, 58 armored vehicles specially fitted to detect chemical and biological attacks, and a shipment of gas masks.[34] When, in the aftermath of the war, a far-reaching political debate broke out over how Germany should fulfill its global responsibilities, Genscher responded that if foreign powers expect Germany to assume greater responsibility in the world, they should give it a chance to express its views "more strongly" in the United Nations Security Council.[14] He also famously held that "whatever floats is fine, whatever rolls is not" to sum up Germany's military export policy for restless countries – based on a navy's unsuitability for use against a country's own people.[35]

In 1992, Genscher, together with his Danish colleague Uffe Ellemann-Jensen, took the initiative to create the Council of the Baltic Sea States (CBSS) and the EuroFaculty.[36]

More than half a century after Nazi leaders assembled their infamous exhibition "Degenerate Art", a sweeping condemnation of the work of the avant-garde, Genscher opened a re-creation of the show at the Altes Museum in March 1992, describing Nazi attempts to restrict artistic expression as "a step toward the catastrophe that produced the mass murder of European Jews and the war of extermination against Germany's neighbors." "The paintings in this exhibition have survived oppression and censorship", he asserted in his opening remarks. "They are not only a monument but also a sign of hope. They stand for the triumph of creative freedom over barbarism."[37]

On 18 May 1992, Genscher retired at his own request from the federal government, which he had been member of for a total of 23 years. At the time, he was the world's longest-serving foreign minister and Germany's most popular politician.[38] He had announced his decision three weeks earlier, on 27 April 1992. Genscher did not specify his reasons for quitting; however, he had suffered two heart attacks by that time. His resignation took effect in May, but he remained a member of parliament and continued to be influential in the Free Democratic Party.[19]

Following Genscher's resignation, Chancellor Helmut Kohl and FDP chairman Otto Graf Lambsdorff named Irmgard Schwaetzer, a former aide to Genscher, to be the new Foreign Minister.[19] In a surprise decision, however, a majority of the FDP parliamentary group rejected her nomination and voted instead to name Justice Minister Klaus Kinkel to head the Foreign Ministry.[39]

Activities after politics

Genscher in 2013

Ahead of the German presidential election in 1994, Genscher proclaimed his lack of interest in the position, but was nonetheless widely considered a leading contender. After a poll taken for Stern magazine showed him to be the favored candidate of 48 percent of German voters, he reiterated in 1993 that he would "in no case" accept the presidency.[40]

Having finished his political career, Genscher remained active as a lawyer and in international organizations. In late 1992, Genscher was appointed chairman of a newly established donors' board of the

German Council on Foreign Relations.[43] In 2001, Genscher headed an arbitration that ended a monthlong battle between German airline Lufthansa and its pilots' union and resulted in an agreement on increasing wages by more than 15 percent by the end of the following year.[44]

In 2008, Genscher joined former

John Kornblum and several other well-known political figures in calling for a Cold War museum to be built at Checkpoint Charlie in Berlin.[45] In 2009 Genscher expressed public concern at Pope Benedict XVI's lifting of excommunication of the bishops of the Society of Saint Pius X. Genscher wrote in the Mitteldeutsche Zeitung: "Poles can be proud of Pope John Paul II. At the last papal election, we said We are the pope! But please—not like this."[46] He argued that Pope Benedict XVI was making a habit of offending non-Catholics. "This is a deep moral and political question. It is about respect for the victims of crimes against humanity", Genscher said.[47]

On 20 December 2013, it was revealed that Genscher played a key role in coordinating the release and flight to Germany of

clemency.[48] When Khodorkovsky's mother was in a Berlin hospital with cancer in November 2013, Genscher passed a message to Khodorkovsky suggesting the prisoner should write a pardon letter to Putin emphasizing his mother's ill health.[50] Following Putin's pardoning of Khodorkovsky "for humanitarian reasons" in December 2013, a private plane provided by Genscher brought Khodorkovsky to Berlin for a family reunion at the Hotel Adlon.[51]

Genscher signed on in 2014 to be a member of the

Goldman Sachs International.[52] The panel's purpose is to facilitate the expansion of a vast natural-gas field in the Caspian Sea and the building of two pipelines across Europe. The $45 billion enterprise, championed by the Azerbaijani president, Ilham Aliyev, has been called by critics "the Blair Rich Project".[53]

Death

Genscher died at his home outside Bonn in Wachtberg on 31 March 2016 from heart failure, 10 days after his 89th birthday.[54][55]

Other activities (selection)

  • CARE Deutschland-Luxemburg, Chairman of the Board of Trustees[56]
  • Club of Budapest, Honorary Member[57]
  • German-Azerbaijani Forum, Honorary Chairman[58]
  • German-Polish Society (DPG), Deputy Chairman of the Board of Trustees[59]
  • Baltic Development Forum, Member of the Honorary Board[60]
  • Deutsche Gesellschaft für die Vereinten Nationen, Member of the Board of Trustees[61]
  • Dimitris Tsatsos Institute for European Constitutional Law at the
    FernUniversität Hagen, Member of the Board of Trustees[62]
  • EastWest Institute, Chairman Emeritus[63]
  • ELSA Deutschland, Member of the Advisory Board (1993–2008)[64]
  • Foundation Wittenberg-Center for Global Ethics, Member of the Board of Trustees[65]
  • Bonner Akademie für Forschung und Lehre praktischer Politik (BAPP), Member of the Board of Trustees[66]
  • Ilsenburg Abbey, Patron[67]
  • Martin Luther University of Halle-Wittenberg, Honorary Chairman of the Board of Trustees[68]
  • University of Bonn, Member of the Board of Trustees[69]
  • A Soul for Europe initiative, Member of the Board of Trustees
  • Gedächtnis der Nation project, Member of the Board of Trustees

Recognition (selection)

Genscher has been awarded honorary citizenship by his birthplace Halle (Saale) (in 1991)[70] and the city of Berlin (in 1993).[71]

Selected works

See also

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Hans-Dietrich Genscher.

References

  1. ^ A master of diplomacy, Deutsche Welle.
  2. ^ Whitney, Craig R.; Eddy, Melissa (1 April 2016). "Hans-Dietrich Genscher, an Architect of German Reunification, Dies at 89". The New York Times. Retrieved 1 April 2016.
  3. ^ Recognizing Slovenia, Croatia brought peace, Genscher says, Deutsche Welle.
  4. ISBN 9781857432176
    .
  5. ^ a b c d e Günsche, Karl-Ludwig (1 April 2016). "Zum Tod von Hans-Dietrich Genscher: Marathonmann der deutschen Politik". Spiegel Online (in German). Retrieved 1 April 2016.
  6. ^ Zeitgeschichte: Von Grass bis Genscher – Wer noch in der NSDAP war. Die Welt, 1 July 2007.
  7. ^ Ulrich Herbert, Universität Freiburg, Darmstädter Echo, Samstag, 13 June 2015, p. 5.
  8. ^ Dennis Kavanagh (1998). "Genscher, Hans-Dietrich". A Dictionary of Political Biography. Oxford: OUP. p. 184. Archived from the original on 27 October 2021. Retrieved 1 September 2013.
  9. ^ a b "Bundestag trauert um Hans-Dietrich Genscher" (in German). Deutscher Bundestag. 1 April 2016. Retrieved 1 April 2016.
  10. ^ a b Hofmann, Gunter (1 May 1992). "Der "Mister Mitte" der Republik". Die Zeit (in German). Retrieved 1 April 2016.
  11. ^ "Porträt: Jahrzehnte prägte Genscher die deutsche Politik". Die Zeit (in German). 1 April 2016. Retrieved 1 April 2016.
  12. ^ "1972 Olympics Massacre: Germany's Secret Contacts to Palestinian Terrorists". Der Spiegel. 28 August 2012. Retrieved 26 July 2013.
  13. ^ Quentin Peel (22 September 2013), Coalition uncertainty hangs over Angela Merkel victory Financial Times.
  14. ^ a b c d Stephen Kinzer (22 March 1991), Genscher At Eye of Policy Debate The New York Times.
  15. ^ William Tuohy (11 June 1989), Bonn's Genscher Views Gorbachev Reforms as 'Historic Opportunity' Los Angeles Times.
  16. ^ Drafting of an international convention against taking hostages Archived 23 March 2014 at the Wayback Machine
  17. ^ "Hans-Dietrich Genscher: Ein Leben in Bildern" (in German). Tagesschau. 1 April 2016. Retrieved 1 April 2016.
  18. ^ a b Tyler Marshall (28 April 1992), Genscher Quits as Germany's Foreign Minister Los Angeles Times.
  19. ^ a b c d e f Stephen Kinzer (28 April 1992), Genscher, Bonn's Foreign Minister 18 Years, Resigns The New York Times.
  20. ^ Bonn Names Libya Envoy Los Angeles Times, 1 October 1988.
  21. ^ Tony Barber (16 December 2012), The blueprint for lopsided monetary union Financial Times.
  22. ^ Hans-Dietrich Genscher (26 February 1988), Memorandum für die Schaffung eines europäischen Währungsraumes und einer Europäischen Zentralbank.
  23. ^ "Hans-Dietrich Genscher mit 89 Jahren gestorben". Die Welt (in German). 1 April 2016. Retrieved 1 April 2016.
  24. ^ William Tuohy (11 June 1989), Bonn's Genscher Views Gorbachev Reforms as 'Historic Opportunity' Los Angeles Times.
  25. ^ William Tuohy (1 October 1989), E. Germans Win Bid to Go to West : Prague, Warsaw Permit 4,000 in Embassies to Leave Los Angeles Times.
  26. ^ "Former German Foreign Minister Hans-Dietrich Genscher dies". BBC. 1 April 2016. Retrieved 1 April 2016.
  27. ^ Former Soviet Minister and Georgia Leader Shevardnadze Dies at 86 Haaretz, 7 July 2014.
  28. ^ Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the GDR: A New Beginning with Big Plans. In: Sites of Unity (Haus der Geschichte), 2022.
  29. ^ "Federal Republic of Germany, German Democratic Republic, Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the United States of America – Treaty on the final settlement with respect to Germany (with agreed minute). Signed at Moscow on 12 September 1990" (PDF). United Nations. 1 December 1992.
  30. ^ Norman Kempster (5 April 1990), Bonn Official Agrees U.S. Must Play Role in Europe Los Angeles Times.
  31. ^ Stephen Kinzer (16 January 1992), Europe, Backing Germans, Accepts Yugoslav Breakup The New York Times.
  32. ^ Paul Lewis (16 December 1991), U.N. Yields to Plans by Germany To Recognize Yugoslav Republics The New York Times.
  33. ^ Alan Riding (16 April 1991), European Nations to Lift Sanctions On South Africa The New York Times.
  34. ^ Tom Hundley (3 February 1991), German Aid To Iraq Opens Israeli Wounds Chicago Tribune.
  35. ^ Germany debates weapons exports amid Iraq 'exception' Deutsche Welle, 25 August 2014.
  36. ISBN 978-3-8305-1769-6
    .
  37. ^ Stephen Kinzer (5 March 1992), Nazi Show Of 'Bad' Art Reopens In Berlin The New York Times.
  38. ^ Ian Johnson (28 April 1992), [1] The Baltimore Sun.
  39. ^ Stephen Kinzer (29 April 1992), Party in Bonn Rebels on Genscher's Successor The New York Times.
  40. ^ Stephen Kinzer (27 March 1993), Germany Considers Jew as President The New York Times.
  41. ^ John Rockwell (12 December 1992), New Start for an Old Opera in Berlin The New York Times.
  42. ^ "Kanzlei: Feine, juristische Lösungen. Seit 1961" (in German). Büsing, Müffelmann & Theye. Archived from the original on 18 April 2016. Retrieved 1 April 2016.
  43. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "Hans-Dietrich Genscher 1927 – 2016". Lebendiges Museum Online (in German). Haus der Deutschen Geschichte. Retrieved 1 April 2016.
  44. ^ Edmund L. Andrews (9 June 2001), Germany: Airline Agreement The New York Times.
  45. Spiegel Online
    .
  46. ^ Wir Sind Papst – aber bitte nicht so! Mitteldeutsche Zeitung, 2 February 2009.
  47. ^ "German-born pope under fire in his homeland over tolerance of Holocaust denial". Haaretz. 3 February 2009.
  48. ^
    ISSN 0099-9660
    .
  49. ^ Arkady Ostrovsky (23 December 2013), Mikhail Khodorkovsky: In from the cold The Economist.
  50. ^ Michelle Martin and Lidia Kelly (26 December 2013), Inside Germany's campaign to free Khodorkovsky Reuters.
  51. ^ Alison Smale (23 December 2013), Deep Russia-Germany Ties Behind a Prisoner's Release The New York Times.
  52. ^ Guy Chazan (17 July 2014), Tony Blair to advise on Azerbaijan gas project Financial Times.
  53. ^ Sarah Ellison (January 2015), The Which Blair Project Vanity Fair.
  54. ^ "Former German foreign minister Genscher dies at 89". Washington Post. 1 April 2016. Archived from the original on 1 April 2016.
  55. ^ "Hans-Dietrich Genscher, an Architect of German Reunification, Dies at 89". The New York Times. 1 April 2016. Retrieved 1 April 2016.
  56. ^ "Verwaltungsrat" (in German). CARE Deutschland-Luxemburg e.V. Retrieved 1 April 2016.
  57. ^ "Club of Budapest". Club of Budapest. Retrieved 1 April 2016.
  58. ^ "Kuratorium" (in German). Deutsch-Aserbaidschanisches Forum. Retrieved 1 April 2016.
  59. ^ "Kuratorium" (in German). Deutsch-Polnische Gesellschaft Bundesverband e.V. Retrieved 1 April 2016.
  60. ^ "Organisation". Baltic Development Forum. Retrieved 1 April 2016.
  61. ^ Matthies, Bernd (1 April 2016). "Hans-Dietrich Genscher und seine spezielle Beziehung zu Berlin". Tagesspiegel (in German). Retrieved 1 April 2016.
  62. FernUniversität Hagen
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  63. ^ "Hans-Dietrich Genscher". EastWest Institute. Archived from the original on 11 April 2016. Retrieved 1 April 2016.
  64. ^ "Beirat" (in German). ELSA Deutschland. Archived from the original on 16 April 2016. Retrieved 1 April 2016.
  65. ^ "Wittenberg Center for Global Ethics: The WCGE grieves the loss of Hans-Dietrich Genscher". Wittenberg Center for Global Ethics. Archived from the original on 1 April 2016. Retrieved 1 April 2016.
  66. ^ "Kuratorium" (in German). Bonner Akademie für Forschung und Lehre praktischer Politik. Retrieved 1 April 2016.
  67. ^ "Vorstand und Kuratoriumsmitglieder" (in German). Kloster Ilsenburg. Archived from the original on 21 March 2016. Retrieved 1 April 2016.
  68. Martin Luther University of Halle-Wittenberg
    .
  69. ^ Neues Kuratorium an der Universität University of Bonn, press release of 17 December 2003.
  70. ^ a b c "Hans-Dietrich Genscher" (in German). Wirtschaftswoche. Archived from the original on 25 March 2016. Retrieved 1 April 2016.
  71. ^ "Müller zum Tod von Hans-Dietrich Genscher: "Berlin dankt dem Ehrenbürger und Staatsmann"". berlin.de (in German). Der Regierende Bürgermeister des Landes Berlin. 1 April 2016. Archived from the original on 6 April 2016. Retrieved 1 April 2016.
  72. ^ Kiessler, Richard (12 November 1990). "Ein Mann, der sich überlebt". Der Spiegel (in German) (46/1990): 28–31.
  73. ^ "Odluka o odlikovanju Hansa Dietricha Genschera Redom kneza Trpimira s ogrlicom i Danicom".
  74. ^ "Honorary Doctorates awarded by Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University since 1918" (PDF). Tbilisi State University. Archived from the original (PDF) on 28 October 2023. Retrieved 28 October 2023.
  75. ^ "Genscher mit Verdienstorden des Landes Sachsen-Anhalt gewürdigt" (in German). Leipziger Volkszeitung. 11 September 2010. Archived from the original on 16 April 2016. Retrieved 1 April 2016.
  76. ^ "Henry A. Kissinger Prize". The American Academy in Berlin. Archived from the original on 12 September 2015. Retrieved 1 April 2016.

Further reading

  • Wilsford, David, ed. Political leaders of contemporary Western Europe: a biographical dictionary (Greenwood, 1995) pp. 155–64.

Literature

External links
Political offices
Preceded by Interior Minister of West Germany
1969–1974 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Foreign Minister of West Germany
1974–1982 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Foreign Minister of West Germany
1982–1990 		Germany reunifies
Recreated Foreign Minister of Germany
1990–1992 		Succeeded by
Preceded by
Vice-Chancellor of West Germany

1974–1982 		Succeeded by
Preceded by
Vice-Chancellor of West Germany

1982–1990 		Germany reunifies
Recreated
Vice-Chancellor of Germany

1990–1992 		Succeeded by
Diplomatic posts
Preceded by
Post created
 Chairman-in-Office of the OSCE
1991 		Succeeded by