CHANCELLOR ANGELA Merkel welcomes world leaders in Berlin today to remember what she has called the “unbelievable day” 20 years ago when the Berlin Wall fell.
With the world watching, the German leader will retrace her own steps across the Bornholmer bridge, the first border crossing to open on the night of November 9th. She will be accompanied by East German civil rights campaigners from 1989.
It was their campaign for free elections and free travel that forced the East German government to open its borders to the West. That paved the way to German unification and the fall of the Iron Curtain.
“I think it will be a very emotional event, a very moving day,” said Dr Merkel in her weekly podcast. “I’m happy that we’ll be able to celebrate this day with our European friends.”
Global political figures and leaders from almost all EU member states, including Taoiseach Brian Cowen, will be present. EU leaders are expected to informally discuss the appointment of the first full-time president of the European Council and a new EU foreign policy chief on the margins of the festivities. They may hold a summit in Brussels on Thursday to formalise the appointments if they strike a deal.
In her address yesterday, Dr Merkel praised the bravery of the civil rights campaigners and thanked Germany’s churches. By opening their doors to allow campaigners to meet, they had “given protection to freedom of speech” and acted as “courageous companions” to the peaceful revolution. This evening’s events are centred around the Brandenburg Gate, for 28 years in a no-man’s land between East and West Berlin. Dr Merkel will be joined there by Poland’s former leader Lech Walesa and former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, two men who helped shape the last years of the Cold War.
Also in attendance will be Russian president Dmitry Medvedev and US secretary of state Hillary Clinton.
The centre of Berlin will be closed for the symbolic toppling of over 1,000 2.5m-high domino stones. Laid along a trail of the former Cold War divide, the polystyrene “stones” resemble panels of the Berlin Wall and have been decorated by artists and schoolchildren worldwide.
The discussions by EU leaders on the margin of events will centre on the two new posts created by the Lisbon Treaty: the full-time presidency of the European Council and the new foreign policy chief.
Belgian prime minister Herman Van Rompuy is widely held to be the favourite for the presidency, but his Dutch counterpart Jan Peter Balkenende remains in contention.
The stance of British prime minister Gordon Brown, who backed the faltering campaign of his predecessor Tony Blair, may yet prove pivotal. Observers believe Mr Brown may back away from Mr Blair in return for a British appointment to the foreign policy post. But while his foreign secretary David Miliband is perceived to be leading the race for that post, doubt has emerged about his willingness to accept the job.
An alternative candidate, whose name surfaced over the weekend, is British business secretary and former EU commissioner Peter Mandelson. Separately, Mr Cowen is soon expected to appoint Ireland’s next EU commissioner. Former minister Máire Geoghegan-Quinn remains the favourite.