German Unity Day: Celebrations 30 years after reunification

On October 3 1990 East and West Germany formally merged after 45 years apart

A picture taken in June 1968 of the famous Checkpoint Charlie crossing point, marking the border between East and West Berlin. AFP

West German Chancellor Helmut Kohl and East German leader Erich Honecker during visit to Bonn..Getty Images

Young East Berliners celebrating atop the Berlin Wall on November 11, 1989. AFP

Two West German policemen prevent people from approaching as East German Vopos stand on a fallen portion of the Berlin Wall in November 1989. AFP

People from East Germany greet citizens of West Germany at the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin on December 22, 1989. AFP

Citizens from both East Germany and West Germany gather for the opening of the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin on December 22, 1989. AFP

Workers removing the head of a statue representing late Soviet leader Vladimir Ilyich Lenin during its demolition on the Leninplatz in Berlin in November 1991. AFP

Russian soldiers march in the streets of Berlin for the last time during their farewell parade 11 June 1994. AFP

Gerhard Schroeder won the general election in 1998. Getty Images

A forklift moves 40,000 Euro coins in Frankfurt Germany switched its currency from the Deutsche Mark to the Euro in January 2002. Getty Images

Angela Merkel became Chancellor in 2005. Getty Images

People attempt to look over a still-existing section of the Berlin Wall on the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Wall, in 2009. Getty Images

Celebrations in Berlin to mark the 25th anniversary of German reunification. Getty Images

A man stops to look at city limits signs that form a walkway in the city center as part of celebrations to mark German Unity Day in 2018 in Berlin. Getty Images

Fireworks erupt over the Brandenburg Gate during celebrations on the 30th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall in 2019. Getty Images

Thirty years ago East and West Germany were reunited, to the celebration of the German people.

As the socialist German Democratic Republic - a client state to the Soviet Union and home to 16 million people - acceded to the Federal Republic of Germany, the ignominy of 45 years was consigned to the past.

In one of the final acts of the East German state, Prime Minister Lothar de Maiziere, the nation’s first and last democratically elected leader, spoke of the joy of the German people.

''In a few moments the German Democratic Republic accedes to the Federal Republic of Germany,” Mr De Maizere said.

“With that, we Germans achieve unity in freedom. It is an hour of great joy. It is the end of many illusions. It is a farewell without tears.''

Crowds sang the German national anthem, and the German flag was raised in front of the Reichstag building as midnight struck on October 3 1990.

In the streets of Berlin and other across Germany, hundreds of thousands of people celebrated Germany's reunification.

Celebrations for this year’s German Unity Day will be scaled back because of the coronavirus.

While Germany has emerged as one of the European nations to have best weathered the Coronavirus pandemic, traditional celebrations in the centre of Berlin have been pared back.

On Saturday, German Chancellor Angela Merkel will be joined by dignitaries in Potsdam for a morning ceremony marking the occasion.

Usual two-day celebrations have been replaced by 30 days of a so-called “Unity Expo” in Potsdam, on the outskirts of the German capital.

As the coronavirus has asked hard questions of all nations around the world, the 30th anniversary comes as Germany is forced to reckon with a changing global order.

On the eve of Germany’s unification, there were fears that the united Germany would become too powerful. At the time, Chancellor Helmut Kohl became the first Chancellor of the reunited state tried to assuage those concerns.

''Everybody should know: Germany will not go it alone, there will be no unilateral nationalism and no 'restless Reich,''' Mr Kohl wrote in an article for the Frankfurter Allgemeine newspaper in 1990.

Today, the spectre of the 20th Century, the devastation of the Second World War and the degradation of the Cold War years in the country still guide Germany’s foreign policy.

In a report released ahead of the 30th anniversary celebrations, the Munich Security Conference paints a picture of a nation too slow to adapt to a changing international order.

“Established foreign policy certainties of the Federal Republic are evaporating. This new situation is characterised by the dissolution of an international order built over decades, the rise of China, and a resurgence of power politics violating international norms,” the report asserts.

The German think tank highlights perceptions on the world stage that Berlin still does not pull its weight. “Germany’s commitment falls short not only of the expectations of its most important partners but also of the requirements arising from the strategic environment,” it says.

In the Middle East and North Africa, this is also apparent. In recent years, Germany has joined the French-led mission in Mali and sent weapons and aid to Kurdish fighters battling Isis in Iraq. “Despite this increased commitment, the accusation that Germany is a security policy free-rider remains,” the think tank said.