German Unity
and European Integration
GERMANY WITH FORMER INNER
GERMAN BORDER
FORMERLY DIVIDED BERLIN
EUROPEAN UNION
German Unity and European Integration
Contents
Greeting from the German Chancellor . 4
Reunification – a historic stroke of luck . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Looking back – the SED dictatorship and the Cold War . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Paving the way for reunification –
the freedom movements in Central and Eastern Europe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
The four former occupying powers agree – the Two plus Four Treaty . . . . . 12
A larger Germany in a Europe of 12 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Reunifying Europe – new Member States in the East . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Progress, crises and new tasks – Europe keeps developing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
The European Union – a unique peace project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Dear readers,
Twenty-five years of German unity – that is
truly a cause for celebration. Our country’s
reunification in peace and freedom was a
historic stroke of luck. We owe a debt of
gratitude to the hundreds of thousands of
people who showed great courage in
protesting against state paternalism and
calling for freedom. They overcame the
dictatorship of East Germany and brought
down the Wall.
And we will never forget that the road to
freedom and unity began at the shipyard
gates in Gdansk and finally led to the
Brandenburg Gate. German unity would not
4
have been imaginable without the freedom
movements in Poland and other Central and
Eastern European countries.
Along with courage and the will to freedom,
it was, ultimately, also trust that paved the
way for German unity. That trust had grown
over the course of decades when Germany
became firmly embedded in the Western
community of values and through European
integration. Our European and transatlantic
partners agreed to German reunification
because they rightly trusted that our
country’s unity also serves European
integration.
German Unity and European Integration
The desire for freedom that people showed
25 years ago in the Communist dictatorships
serves both as a reminder and an obligation
for us today and for future generations. We
must never cease in our efforts to ensure
that Europe remains an area of peace and of
freedom. The weal and woe of all our
countries are inextricably linked. Europe is
our destiny. It is up to us to work together to
make it the best we can.
This brochure explains the steps on the road
to reunification from the European perspective – and at the same time looks at what
European integration means for our future.
ANGELA MERKEL
GERMAN CHANCELLOR
5
Reunification –
a historic stroke of luck
“We are the people!”
No-one could have imagined that the Wall
would fall on 9 November 1989. Less than
one year later Germany was reunified – after
decades of division into two German states
that were separated by a wall and barbed
wire.
Reunification was a historic stroke of luck.
It was made possible because brave people
in East Germany joined the opposition
movement and took to the streets to call for
democracy and freedom. The stakes were
high: There had already been an uprising
against the Communist regime in East
Germany on 17 June 1953 that was violently
crushed.
The view from the outside
How did other countries react to the events
that unfolded in Germany? Most people
abroad celebrated and felt for those
Germans who wanted freedom and unity.
But many could not forget World War II.
6
The Nazi regime, its crimes against humanity and wars of extermination claimed
millions of lives across Europe. Many people
were therefore sceptical about a reunified,
larger German state.
Not possible without our
neighbours
What is clear is that the fall of the Wall and
reunification were crucially dependent on
our neighbours in Europe and the world.
The civil rights movement in East Germany
was largely inspired by the freedom
movements in Eastern Europe.
Without the trust of the states involved in
the “Two plus Four” talks and in the
European Community there would have
been no reunification. The fact that trust
could be built was largely due to Franco–
German reconciliation, the Warsaw Treaty,
recognition of Germany’s guilt for the
Holocaust, and Germany’s membership of
NATO, the United Nations and the European
Community.
German Unity and European Integration
23 May and 7 October 1949
9 November 1989
The two German states are founded .
Germany is divided into a liberal democracy
and a Communist dictatorship based on the
Soviet model .
The Berlin Wall falls during the
night . Thousands of people
flock to the border crossings .
3 October 1990
The Basic Law enters into force in the states
of former East Germany . After more than
40 years of division the two German states
are reunified .
“Got it mostly right!”
The Viennese author and journalist Ewald König was
Germany correspondent in Berlin and Bonn in 1989/90:
“Floods of refugees, the Monday demonstrations, Günter
Schabowski’s press conference, the fall of the Wall, the Two
plus Four talks, German unity – I witnessed it all at first
hand and described every facet. Twenty-five years later
I would like to thank the Germans for so many exciting
stories and congratulate them: You got it mostly right!”
7
Looking back – the SED dictatorship
and the Cold War
Germany divided
Two German states were founded in 1949.
In 1961 the Wall divided Berlin and
Germany once and for all. The division
ripped apart entire families and meant those
living in East Germany lost the freedom of
movement. Many refugees lost their lives
along the Wall and the inner German
border.
A constitutional democracy was established
after the end of the war in western Germany,
while a Communist dictatorship emerged in
eastern Germany. Many people were
discriminated, kept under surveillance and
persecuted for political reasons. They were
at the mercy of the inhumane methods used
by the Stasi. Trials were held without rule of
law standards and there were arbitrary,
politically motivated arrests.
The Cold War and unprecedented
arms race
The Wall and the inner German border not
only divided Germany, but also Europe and
8
the world. The Soviet Union and the Warsaw
Pact on one side stood opposite the United
States and NATO on the other. The Cold War
dominated the political landscape for
decades. And the two blocs engaged in an
unprecedented arms race.
An end to confrontation
West Germany initially tried to stop East
Germany being officially recognised, but
then changed its policy in the late 1960s. The
treaties concluded with a number of Eastern
bloc countries, the Quadripartite Agreement
on Berlin and the Basic Treaty heralded a
new era of détente.
The Helsinki Final Act was signed in 1975 by
35 countries, including the Soviet Union.
Signatories agreed on the right to self-determination of peoples and respect for human
rights. The Final Act became a symbol of
freedom from political repression. In 1985
Mikhail Gorbachev became Secretary
General of the Communist Party of the
Soviet Union. His reform policies initiated
the end of the Cold War.
German Unity and European Integration
13 August 1961
Construction of the Berlin Wall begins in
order to stop people fleeing to the free
west . The Iron Curtain divides the whole
of Europe .
7 December 1970
West Germany and the
Republic of Poland sign the
Warsaw Treaty . On the same
day the then German Chancellor Willy Brandt kneels in front
of the Monument to the
Heroes of the Warsaw Ghetto .
11 March 1985
Mikhail Gorbachev becomes Secretary General of the
Communist Party of the Soviet Union in Moscow.
He begins his reforms . It is his policies of glasnost
and perestroika that herald the end of the Cold War .
“Kept prisoner in my own country”
Edda Schönherz was a TV announcer in East Germany. In 1974
she enquired with the West German embassy in Budapest
about ways to leave the country. As a result, she was imprisoned for three years. Her children were not allowed to visit her:
“East Germany was a dictatorship that kept its own people
prisoner. I wanted my children to be able to decide for
themselves what they wanted to study and where they
wanted to live. In 1974 Honecker was in negotiations in
Helsinki and I wanted to take him by his word and to have
freedom of movement for myself and my children.”
9
Paving the way for reunification –
the freedom movements in Central
and Eastern Europe
Opposition in East Germany was
not alone
The people in East Germany who were brave
enough to protest against their regime in
the autumn of 1989 were not alone in
calling for freedom. People were protesting
across the whole of the Communist bloc.
These protests paved the way for the
collapse of East Germany and the totalitarian Communist system. Reunification would
not have been possible without the freedom
movements in our eastern neighbours.
Poland leads the way
Solidarność was founded in 1980. The trade
union movement was backed by large parts
of Polish society and by the Church, and was
a key player when it came to bringing down
the Communist power structure. The trade
union was banned, but by 1988 it was
exerting pressure on the regime in Warsaw
with its nationwide strikes.
10
In February 1989 the State party entered into
an official dialogue with the opposition: The
“round table” talks led to Solidarność being
reinstated and to the first semi-free elections
being held on 4 June.
Desire for freedom across the whole
of Central and Eastern Europe
The events in Poland were the driving force
for upheavals in other countries too: People
in the Baltic states demonstrated peacefully
for their independence in what is called the
“Singing Revolution”. In Hungary the
opposition forces formed a round table in
March 1989 that then held negotiations with
the Communists about a regime change. In
Czechoslovakia peaceful mass protests and
strikes heralded the start of the “Velvet
Revolution”.
Across the whole of the former Eastern bloc
people demonstrated bravely for freedom
and democracy, sometimes risking their
lives. Like in Romania, for instance, where
the Ceaușescu regime used force to end
demonstrations until it was toppled.
German Unity and European Integration
6 February 1989
The “round table” talks in Poland are
the first negotiations between a
government and an opposition
movement in the Eastern bloc .
19 August 1989
The Iron Curtain is symbolically raised for
the first time at the “Pan-European Picnic”
in Sopron along the Austro–Hungarian
border . Almost 700 East Germans take the
opportunity to flee to the West .
23 August 1989
More than one million Estonians, Latvians and
Lithuanians form a human chain 600 km long .
Called “the Baltic Way”, it was their way of
demonstrating for their independence .
“The Wall fell in Gdansk”
Eckart Hübener often travelled to Poland from East Berlin
in 1980/81. On one of his trips he was carrying Solidarność
texts, which was why he was arrested and sentenced to
15 months in prison:
“Solidarność’s idea of humanity that was based on freedom and self-determination was diametrically opposed
to that of the Communist dictatorship. It was incredibly
enriching for me to set the two against each other. I had to
take that message to East Germany.”
11
The four former
occupying powers agree –
the Two plus Four Treaty
Basis for reunification
German reunification would not have been
possible without the agreement of the
former Allies, as they still had reserved
rights over Germany. That was not the only
reason why the United States, the Soviet
Union, the United Kingdom and France had
to be involved, though: German reunification realigned the whole European order
and world politics.
In February 1990 the foreign ministers of
the two German states and the former Allies
reached agreement in Ottawa on the “Two
plus Four” format. Four rounds of negotiations followed – one including Poland, when
the Oder–Neiße Line was finally recognised
as Germany’s eastern border.
Agreement despite scepticism
The Two plus Four Treaty was signed in
Moscow on 12 September 1990 following
difficult but swift negotiations. The German
negotiators were able to convince the Allies
12
that a united Germany would not pose a
threat to international stability.
The United States unreservedly supported
developments towards reunification from
the outset. The United Kingdom and France
were ultimately convinced that Germany
would remain a peace-loving partner in
NATO and the European Community and
that now more than ever it would drive
forward the process of European integration.
The Soviet Union accepts the freedom to choose alliances
Initially, the Soviet Union could not imagine
Germany becoming a member of NATO.
At a meeting in the Caucasus the then
German Chancellor Helmut Kohl and
Mikhail Gorbachev reached agreement, and
the Soviet President said he was willing to
allow a united Germany to freely choose its
alliances.
German Unity and European Integration
14 July 1990
Mikhail Gorbachev and
Helmut Kohl meet in the
Caucasus. Gorbachev agrees
to a united Germany becoming
a NATO member .
17 July 1990
Poland joins the penultimate round
of negotiations in Paris . Germany
finally recognises the Oder–Neiße
Line .
12 September 1990
The Two plus Four Treaty is
signed in Moscow .
“In peace with all nations”
At the signing of the Two plus Four Treaty on 12 September
1990 the then Federal Foreign Minister, Hans-Dietrich
Genscher, said:
“We will face up and do justice to our responsibility. Our
message to the nations of the world is: We want nothing
more than to live in freedom, democracy and in peace with
all other nations.”
13
A larger Germany
in a Europe of 12
How did East Germany come
to join the EC?
West Germany was one of the founding
members of the European Community. But
how did East Germany come to join? Legally
speaking, in accordance with the then
applicable version of Article 23 of the Basic
Law, its accession to West Germany also
meant full EC membership. East Germany’s
declaration of accession was therefore also
binding on the European Community.
But there were some Member States that
had misgivings and intense negotiations
ensued. Then, at a special summit in Dublin
in April 1990 all the heads of state and
government unreservedly welcomed
German reunification. On 3 October 1990
Germany became the most populous of the
12 Member States by far – with some 80
million inhabitants.
14
The birth of the European Union
Forty years previously, in 1950, the French
Foreign Minister Robert Schumann had
proposed subjecting French and German
coal and steel production to a European
authority that would also be open to other
countries. Five years after the end of the war
the former enemies were to become joint
members of a supranational organisation.
The Schuman Plan led to the founding of the
European Coal and Steel Community. It laid
the foundations for the European Union.
In 1957 six countries formed the European
Economic Community. From 1986 it had
12 members and was called the European
Community.
Europe comes together
In 1989 the EC took a step towards greater
European integration: In June the European
Council agreed on the gradual implementation of a European economic and monetary
union. The negotiations on German reunification speeded up this development.
German Unity and European Integration
9 May 1950
Five years after the end of
the war, the French Foreign
Minister announces the
Schuman Plan in Paris that
leads to the founding of the
European Coal and Steel
Community .
25 March 1957
Six European countries,
including West Germany, sign
the Treaties of Rome and
found the European Economic
Community .
28 April 1990
In Dublin all the heads of state and government of the
European Community welcome German reunification .
Upon its reunification on 3 October Germany becomes
its most populous Member State .
“German unity and European unity are
inextricably linked”
On 3 October 1990 the then German Chancellor
Helmut Kohl said:
“German unity and European unity are inextricably linked.
We will continue to work towards European unity with the
same tenacity with which we sought our own unity.”
15
Reunifying Europe –
new Member States in the East
East and West come together
When the Iron Curtain fell it not only led to
German reunification. It also provided the
impetus for a massive enlargement of the
European Union – from 12 to 28 Member
States. After decades of division eastern and
western Europe came together again.
During the largest round of enlargement on
1 May 2004 a total of 10 countries joined the
European Union, including eight Central
and Eastern European countries: the three
Baltic States, Poland, Hungary, the Czech
Republic, Slovakia and Slovenia. Romania
and Bulgaria joined in 2007, Croatia in 2013.
Opportunity and challenge for the
new and old Member States
Integrating countries that were formerly
ruled by Communist regimes was a huge
opportunity. At the same time it represented
a massive challenge for both the new and
the old Member States. Accession negotiations were opened. In the end, the EU was
able to shape the process of transformation
16
these countries underwent towards more
democracy, rule of law and stability.
Germany in the centre of Europe
EU enlargement had political and economic
advantages for the new and old Member
States, and led to more cultural exchange.
That was especially true in the case of
reunified Germany: It was now no longer on
the edge of Europe but at its centre. Poland
and the Czech Republic, its direct neighbours to the east, were also members.
The new Member States became partners in
an enlarged EU. By becoming part of the
Internal Market economic growth and living
standards increased. The old Member States
opened up new markets for exports and
investments. Germany in particular benefitted and continues to benefit from that.
German Unity and European Integration
1 May 2004
During the biggest round of enlargement
in its history the European Union gains
10 new Member States .
1 January 2007
Bulgaria and Romania
join the EU .
1 July 2013
Croatia is the last country to
accede to the EU . The European
Union now has 28 Member States
and a population of more than
half a billion .
“Everything is a
lot less complicated”
The Stolfig Group has its headquarters in Geisenfeld in Bavaria.
It produces body parts for the automobile industry. Felicia Stolfig
is responsible for the company’s branch in the Czech Republic:
“My father established our branch in Chotěšov back in 1991.
From the very beginning we were extremely happy with our
Czech staff. But it is clear that since the Czech Republic joined
the EU everything is a lot less complicated for us. Transporting goods is easier and staff can be employed more flexibly
at our different sites or brought over to take part in training
courses.”
17
Progress, crises and new tasks –
Europe keeps developing
A lot has happened in 25 years
Crises and tasks for the future
A lot has happened in Europe in the quarter
of a century since German reunification. Not
only have 16 new Member States acceded to
the EU, but important steps have been taken
towards greater European integration. The
EU today is very different from the EC of
25 years ago.
Germany and the other Member States have
European integration to thank for a great
deal. The crises in the EU’s direct neighbours
and further afield show that peace, freedom
and prosperity can by no means be taken for
granted today.
The Maastricht Treaty was signed in 1992. It
created the European Union. It also led to the
founding of the European Economic and
Monetary Union and, ultimately, to the introduction of the euro. At the same time the
European Parliament was given a lot more
competences. Today it has the same legislative powers as the Council of Ministers.
The Internal Market has been continuously
developed; its completion remains a
political priority. In 1995 border controls
between Germany, France, the Benelux
countries, Portugal and Spain were abolished. Today, the Schengen Area covers
22 EU Member States, plus Switzerland,
Liechtenstein, Norway and Island.
18
Despite all the progress that has been made,
Europe still faces huge challenges following
the 2008/09 international financial crisis that
led to the European sovereign debt crisis.
That includes regaining lost confidence.
The European Union needs to focus on its
core strengths and to contribute to meeting
the challenges that lie ahead – from creating
growth and jobs to a sustainable climate and
energy policy. To that end the EU adopted a
five-year Strategic Agenda in June 2014.
German Unity and European Integration
7 February 1992
The Maastricht Treaty is signed .
The EC becomes the EU .
13 December 2007
The Treaty of Lisbon is signed
and enters into force two years
later . The European Parliament
gains more influence and the
Charter of Fundamental Rights
becomes legally binding .
10 May 2010
The financial crisis is in full
swing . The EU and the IMF
adopt an unprecedented
rescue package to protect the
euro . A total of 750 million
euros is made available for
emergency loans .
“Peace, freedom, human rights –
and what I don’t like”
Evagelia Vlassaki, 16, high school student from Berlin:
“I think it’s important that we live in peace here in the
EU, that I can live in freedom, and that human rights are
respected everywhere. I love the diversity of cultures and
languages in Europe. The Schengen Area is great too: we
EU citizens benefit from the freedom of movement. What
I don’t like is how Frontex treats refugees along the EU’s
external borders. And I would like more information about
the tasks and goals of the EU, especially in schools.”
19
The European Union –
a unique peace project
Nobel Peace Prize goes to the
European Union
The EU is the world’s largest economic area.
But it is much more than that: It is a peace
project that is unique in history and radiates
an effect way beyond Europe’s borders.
Since the founding of the European Coal
and Steel Community in 1950 it has
guaranteed its Member States lasting peace
– after two devastating wars in the heart of
Europe. In 2012 the Norwegian Nobel
Committee awarded the European Union
the Nobel Peace Prize.
A community of values
The EU is a community of values whose
members are committed to democracy, the
rule of law, freedom and human rights. The
Charter on Fundamental Rights of the
European Union forms part of the Treaty of
Lisbon. Countries that are or wish to become
members of the EU must apply democratic
and rule of law standards and must protect
human rights.
20
Europe is Germany’s future
Crises, political differences and sometimes
complicated decision-making processes
show that the European Union is not
perfect. But after centuries of conflicts and
wars it is the best thing that could have
happened to Europe. And only if we work
together as the European Union will we
Europeans, with our common values and
interests, be able to hold our own in the
globalised 21st century.
Without the joint efforts of our neighbours
in the west and in the east German reunification and European integration would have
been inconceivable after the collapse of
Communism. Today the European Union
can only further develop its vision of a
Europe of democracy and of peace if we all
work together.
German Unity and European Integration
10 December 2012
The Nobel Peace Prize is
awarded to the European
Union in Oslo . The prize money
goes to the “Children of Peace”,
an educational programme for
children across the world who
are the victims of conflict –
a lasting legacy of the Nobel
Peace Prize .
25 March 1957
Just 12 years after the end of World War II
six European countries, including West
Germany, sign the Treaties of Rome . They
lay the foundation for today’s EU .
7 December 2000
The Charter of Fundamental Rights
is proclaimed in Nice . It comes into
effect at the same time as the Treaty
of Lisbon .
“The Nobel Peace Prize 2012 goes
to the European Union”
From the announcement by the Nobel
Committee:
“The Norwegian Nobel Committee wishes
to focus on what it sees as the EU’s most
important result: the successful struggle for
peace and reconciliation and for democracy and human rights. The stabilizing part
played by the EU has helped to transform
most of Europe from a continent of war to
a continent of peace.”
21
Published by
The Press and Information Office of the Federal Government,
11044 Berlin, Germany
As at
February 2015
Edited by
Heike Bolius
Designed by
MediaCompany – Agentur für Kommunikation GmbH
Printed by
Zarbock GmbH & Co KG, Frankfurt am Main
Photo captions
p. 6: People from West and East Berlin standing on top of the Berlin
Wall in front of the Brandenburg Gate on 9 November 1989
p. 7: Ewald König, a contemporary witness
p. 8: The Berlin Wall at Potsdamer Platz in 1978, looking across
towards East Berlin
p. 9: The then German Chancellor Willy Brandt kneels in front of
the Monument to the Heroes of the Warsaw Ghetto on 7 December
1970. Edda Schönherz, a contemporary witness
p. 10: Solidarność representatives during the round table talks in
Warsaw on 6 February 1989. From left to right: Tadeusz Mazowiecki,
Lech Walesa and Wladyslaw Frasyniuk
p. 11: Eckart Hübener, a contemporary witness
p. 12: Signing of the Two plus Four Treaty in the Oktjabrskaja
Hotel in Moscow on 12 September 1990. From right to left: Foreign
Minister Douglas Hurd (UK), Prime Minister Lothar de Maizière
(East Germany), Foreign Minister Hans-Dietrich Genscher (West
Germany), Secretary General of the Communist Party of the Soviet
Union Mikhail Gorbachev (USSR), Secretary of State James Baker
(USA), Eduard Shevardnadze (USSR) and Roland Dumas (France)
p. 13: The then Foreign Minister Hans-Dietrich Genscher in 1990
p. 14: The then German Chancellor Helmut Kohl (right) and the
then President of the EC Commission, Jacques Delors (left), on
25 September 1990 in the Federal Chancellery. They are holding a
map of Europe that shows the borders of the Federal Republic of
Germany after the accession of East Germany
p. 15: The then German Chancellor Helmut Kohl in 1990
p. 16: Young Czechs celebrate in the Old Town in Prague on the eve
of EU enlargement on 30 April 2004
p. 17: Felicia Stolfig
p. 18: The plenary of the European Parliament in Strasbourg
p. 19: Evagelia Vlassaki
p. 20: EU accession celebrations in Riga on 1 May 2004
p. 21: The European Union is awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo
on 10 December 2012. From left to right: the then President of the
European Council, Herman Van Rompuy, the then President of the
Commission, José Manuel Barroso, and the President of the European Parliament, Martin Schulz
Photo credits
action-press/AA/Abaca Press: p. 18
Judith Affolter: p. 11
Clemens Bilan: p. 7, 19
Federal Government/Bergmann: p. 4
Federal Government/Lehnartz: p. 6, 8
Federal Government/Reineke: p. 9, 12, 14
Federal Government/Schambeck: p. 13
Sarah Johanna Eick: p. 9
European Union 2012/Georges Boulougouris: p. 21
Tobias Hase: p. 17
imago/Forum: p. 10
imago/Sven Simon: p. 15
laif/Peter Hirth: p. 20
marqs/Photocase: title page
picture-alliance/dpa/Sterba: p. 16
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