Ecxellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen, Colleagues and

Ecxellencies,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Colleagues and Friends,
Meine Damen und Herren,
Liebe Landsleute,
The German National Day, our Day of Unity, the 3rd
October, is a happy day.
Happy days are not filled with long speeches.
But allow me a few remarks, which I will partially
deliver in German.
Only 25 years ago Germany became united again.
Less than 11 months after the fall of the Berlin Wall
on 9 November 1989.
Since then the Leitmotiv of our country seems to be
that of constant change.
Our own country keeps on surprising me.
In summer 2006 we got ready for the arrival of
Hundreds of thousands of people on the
occasion of the Football World Championship.
To tell you the truth: at that time I was afraid
that we Germans would come across as good
organizers but as stiff and boring hosts with no
sense of humor. We were all surprised in 2006 to
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find out how much we and our guests did enjoy
the Football Championship – and how well we
could party. It was a summer dream.
This year again, hundreds of thousands of people
came to Germany. This time they did not come
as football fans but as refugees fleeing war and
desperation. And there was another summer
dream when Germans flocked to train stations in
Munich, Dortmund and Berlin to welcome
refugees with chants and presents. They
displayed solidarity, hospitality and generosity
towards the desperate people arriving on German
soil. It came as a surprise because previously we
had tormented ourselves with long debates
whether we would be able to develop a culture of
welcoming immigrants. And then it just so
happened.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
I do hope that Germany will keep this ability to
change and to surprise ourselves in such positive
ways. Because we need to continue to change and to
adapt in future:
The 2030 agenda for the first time draws a plan to
create the future we want. This agenda will mean
change and transformation for all countries. For our
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job here in Rome, we received clear instructions: To
end hunger by 2030.
A climate protection agreement that we hope should
come out of the Paris conference at end of this year
should lead to effective climate protection. This also
means changes in the way we run our economies,
how we consume and how we produce.
Meine Damen und Herren,
Deutschland will seinen Beitrag leisten, Zukunft gut
zu gestalten. Finanziell, durch politischen Input und
wo immer möglich durch einen Beitrag zu guter
globaler Nachbarschaft, wie Außenminister
Steinmeier vor wenigen Tagen bei der
Generalversammlung der Vereinten Nationen
betonte. Das geht nur, wenn Menschen sich
engagieren. Dies erfordert Kongruenz zwischen
Politik und den Menschen, die ist heute nicht mehr
selbstverständlich. Aber in DEU weiterhin gegeben.
Vor wenigen Wochen hat Bundespräsident Gauck die
neu ernannten Botschafter persönlich verabschiedet.
Die Worte, die der Bundespräsident uns mit auf den
Weg gab, klingen mir noch im Ohr. Er forderte uns
auf selbstbewusst unser Land zu vertreten. Wir
sollten stolz sein auf ein Land, das die Kraft hat, sich
immer wieder zu erneuern. Und stolz auf die
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Menschen, die sich in den schwierigen Tagen des
massiven Zustroms von Flüchtlingen so
gastfreundlich, aufnahmebereit und menschlich
zeigen.
Meine Damen und Herren, meine Frau Irmgard
Maria Fellner und ich, wir wollen Ihnen heute
Abend ein kleines Stück Deutschland bieten. Für Sie,
die Deutschen unter Ihnen, mag das eine
Gelegenheit sein, sich ein wenig wie zu Hause zu
fühlen.
I invite you, our international guests, to take this
evening reception as an opportunity to enjoy a
somewhat German environment even against the
backdrop of the Roman walls.
A last remark: The residence is still unfurnished: this
is not due to notorious German austerity. We only
moved into this house less than three weeks ago.
However we were determined to host this reception
on our National Day here in spite of having to
improvise. Please excuse us if something is not
working the way you would expect this from a
German residence. Check again next year:
everything will be perfect.
I wish you a splendid evening. And don’t forget: The
day of German unity is a happy day.
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