BURDA MAGAZINE FALL 1989 PLUS
The two plus four negotiations involving the two German states, the Soviet Union, the U.S., France and Britain could not be an easy ride. Today, reading some comments and reminiscences of that time, one might get the impression that the process of reunification was a cakewalk, that everything came like manna from heaven, or that it all happened as a result of happy chance or even naiveté of some parties. I told Chancellor Kohl, it is important for the Germans, in managing unification, to respect the feelings of other peoples as well as their own interests. But there are things that cannot be erased from history. Of course the Germans had changed they had learned the lessons of Hitler’s reign and World War II. We had to reckon with the people’s memory of the war, of its horrors and victims. Their concern was understandable, both historically and psychologically. Reunification of Germany was now on the agenda, and this was bound to cause concern among Soviet citizens, many of whom were alarmed.
That was extremely important, because after the fall of the Wall the developments in the G.D.R. At the same time, we did our utmost to make sure that the process moved along peaceful lines, without infringing on the vital interests of our country or undermining peace in Europe. In those conditions, the Soviet leadership’s first step was to rule out military force by the Soviet troops stationed in the G.D.R. 9, 1989, was the result of specific circumstances and the evolution of popular mood. The fall of the Berlin Wall was therefore not a surprise for us. The protests and the political demands–from freedom of emigration to freedom of speech and the dissolution of government bodies to the reunification of Germany–were gaining momentum. Subsequent events confirmed that the G.D.R. They were chanting: Perestroika! Gorbachev, help! We knew that they had been carefully pre-selected, which made their behavior even more striking. As I stood on the rostrum, greeting the columns of participants in the parade, I felt almost physically the people’s discontent. In October 1989, I attended the festivities in East Berlin marking the 40th anniversary of the G.D.R.
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