Kohl, who led Germany from 1982 to 1998, has been credited with the reunification of Germany after the fall of the Berlin WallHelmut Kohl, the chancellor who presided over both German reunification and the creation of the Eurozone, and known as “the man who reunited the East and the West,” has died, at age 87. Here you can find seven quotes that show why he nicknamed “the reunification architect.”
- “Peace must be more than the absence of war.” (December 14, 1995)
- “The policy of European integration is in reality a question of war and peace in the 21st century.” (February 2, 1996)
- “It is unacceptable that the European Constitution, as opposed to the constitutions of the different German states and of Germany’s federal constitution, includes no reference to God.” (September 30, 2005, conferences organized by Bishop Gerhard Ludwig of Ratisbon).
- “Short speeches, long sausages,” (quoted by Vanity Fair, December, 1990, to express that the job of a leader is to deliver the goods, not orate).
- “I am not the one trying to speed things up. We are being driven.” (Awake! magazine, December 22, 1991. Note: The idea of German reunification, often discussed but considered unrealistic, once again became a subject of heated debate. German chancellor Helmut Kohl made these remarks when he was accused of pushing unification plans too fast).
- “The visionaries of yesterday are the realists of today” (Discussion with his predecessor Helmut Schmidt in ‘Die Zeit’, 1998)
- “My parent were Christians—Catholics…. I remember my mother to be a very pious woman, but she was never against other religions.” To Vanity Fair, December, 1990.
