""We will enter into discussions with city districts with the goal of naming a prominent street or square after Helmut Kohl." This unadorned sentence appears in the coalition agreement that was signed by the center-right Christian Democrats (CDU) and center-left Social Democrats (SPD), who have been governing the city-state of Berlin since April 2023."
"Now, two and a half years later, Berlin's Mayor Kai Wegner (CDU) has officially announced the exact location in the German capital where Helmut Kohl (CDU), who served as federal chancellor from 1982 to 1998, is to be honored: on the centrally located Hofjagerallee. "It is a big street for a mighty man to whom we owe a great deal," said Wegner, in explanation of the renaming process that is now underway."
"Kohl, who died in 2017 at the age of 87, is considered the key architect of German reunification on October 3, 1990. Less than three weeks after the fall of the Berlin Wall on November 9, 1989, he presented his ten-point plan to the German Bundestag, with the aim of reuniting the country that had been divided into East and West since 1949. The majority of the German population shared in this desire. But in order to fulfill the plan, the victorious powers of World War II the US, UK, France and the Soviet Union also had to be convinced. It didn't take long for Kohl, who held a doctorate in history, to overcome widespread reservations about reunification. His greatest achievement was securing the Kremlin's approval in personal talks with reformist communist Mikhail Gorbachev."
A coalition agreement committed Berlin to seek a prominent street or square named after Helmut Kohl. Mayor Kai Wegner (CDU) announced that Hofjägerallee will be renamed to honor Kohl. Wegner described the location as fitting for a leader "to whom we owe a great deal." Kohl is credited as the chief architect of German reunification on October 3, 1990, after presenting a ten-point plan weeks after the fall of the Berlin Wall. Kohl negotiated Allied and Kremlin approval, notably securing Soviet assent through talks with Mikhail Gorbachev. Kohl died in 2017 at age 87.
Read at www.dw.com
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