Helmut Kohl, Bundeskanzler von 1982 bis 1998, beschreibt in seinen Erinnerungen die letzten Versuche der Kommunisten in der DDR ihre Macht zu konsolidieren.

‘West. Polish, Vietnamese, Bulgarian Turks, Volga Germans, Romanian Hungarians, Chinese, refugees from the GDR, refugees from the whole world.’ On 12 August 1989, following the gradual collapse of the communist regimes in the former Eastern bloc, Fritz Behrendt, a Dutch cartoonist originally from Berlin, illustrates the question of the arrival and integration of refugees from Central and Eastern Europe in the West. In light of the growing migrant crisis, the West appears to be increasingly like an impenetrable ship. In September 1989, nearly 6 000 East German refugees gather in front of the Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany in Prague in the hope of joining the FRG via the Hungary–Austria border.

In September 1989, in the Holy Family Church Square, the City of Budapest welcomes numerous refugees from the German Democratic Republic (GDR).

In September 1989, some 6 000 East German refugees meet in front of the Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany in Prague hoping to be able to reach the FRG via the Hungarian-Austrian border that was opened on 10 September. On 30 September 1989, the German Federal Foreign Minister, Hans-Dietrich Genscher, tells them that they are legally authorised by the GDR to emigrate to the FRG.

On 12 October 1989, the European Parliament adopts a resolution on the exodus of thousands of East German citizens to the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) in which it calls on the Government of the German Democratic Republic to open the way for democratic reforms.

On 18 October 1989, Egon Krenz succeeds Erich Honecker as General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Socialist Unity Party (SED) of the German Democratic Republic (GDR).

In seiner Ausgabe vom 23. Oktober 1989 berichtet das deutsche Nachrichtenmagazin Der Spiegel über Egon Krenz, den Nachfolger Erich Honeckers als Generalsekretär des Zentralkomitees der Sozialistischen Einheitspartei Deutschlands (SED).

On 23 October 1989, thousands of people demonstrate in the ‘Monday demonstrations’ in Leipzig against the policy of the East German Government and call for the democratisation of the German Democratic Republic (GDR).

In October 1989, thousands of people demonstrate for freedom and democracy in the German Democratic Republic (GDR) with prayers for peace held at St. Nicholas’ Church (Nikolaikirche) in Leipzig and the ‘Monday demonstrations’ along the ‘Leipziger Ring’.

On 4 November 1989, a demonstration attended by over 500 000 people takes place in East Berlin. The demonstrators call for more reforms and greater freedom for the press. Under the pressure of the crowd assembled on the Alexanderplatz, the ruling regime accepts the debate and Günter Schabowski, a leading member of the Socialist Unity Party (SED) of the German Democratic Republic (GDR), gives an address which is booed by the crowd of demonstrators.

‘Monday demonstrations’. On 6 November 1989, thousands of people demonstrate peacefully in Leipzig against the policy of the East German Government and call for the reunification of divided Germany.

On 10 November 1989, the day after the fall of the Berlin Wall, East German leaders promise ‘free, secret’ elections for May 1990. The photo shows Egon Krenz, General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Socialist Unity Party (SED) of the German Democratic Republic, giving an address.

The ‘Monday demonstrations’, held in Leipzig on 13 November 1989 to protest against the policy of the Communist East German Government.

On 16 November 1989, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe forwards to the Committee of Ministers a recommendation on the recent events in the German Democratic Republic (GDR).

‘A new sun in the GDR.’ The cartoonist Fritz Behrendt sees the fall of the Communist regime in the German Democratic Republic (GDR) in 1989 as heralding Chancellor Helmut Kohl’s policy of German reunification.

Am 13. Dezember 1989, in einem Interview mit dem DDR-Fernsehen, erläutert der Bundespräsident Richard von Weizsäcker, die Frage der Deutschen Wiedervereinigung und befürwortet demokratische Veränderungen in der Deutschen Demokratischen Republik.

In 1989, the German cartoonist, Walter Hanel, depicts the collapse of the Communist regime in the German Democratic Republic (GDR) and emphasises the longing of the East German people for more freedom and democracy.

Horst Teltschik, außenpolitischer Berater Helmut Kohls, schildert seine Eindrücke über den Zusammensturz des kommunistischen Regimes in der Deutschen Demokratischen Republik (DDR) zu Beginn des Jahres 1990.

Le 1er février 1990, Hans Modrow, président du Conseil de ministres de la République démocratique allemande (RDA), présente sa conception en vue de la réalisation de l'unification allemande. Il insiste notamment sur le rôle de l'Allemagne unifiée comme facteur de stabilité, de confiance et de la paix en Europe.

'In 100 years' time, the wall will still be standing.' In 1988, Erich Honecker, Secretary-General of the Unified Socialist Party of the FRG, rejects the idea of dismantling the Berlin Wall and undertakes to defend the values of the Federal Republic of Germany.

Während einer Pressekonferenz des Zentralkomitees der Sozialistischen Einheitspartei Deutschlands – SED, verkündet Günter Schabowski, der Sekretär für Informationswesen im Zentralkomitee der SED, dass Privatreisen von Bürgern der Deutschen Demokratischen Republik (DDR) ins Ausland ohne Voraussetzungen und unverzüglich unternommen werden können. Diese, zur großen Überraschung aller, abgegebene Erklärung, die auch vorsieht, dass Ausreisen aus der DDR über alle Grenzübergangsstellen zur Bundesrepublik Deutschland (BRD) beispielsweise zu West-Berlin erfolgen können, führt in der Nacht vom 9. zum 10. November 1989 zum Fall der Berliner Mauer.

During the night of 9 to 10 November 1989, the Berlin Wall comes down. For the first time in 28 years, all Berliners are able to move freely throughout the city.

Am 9. November 1989 fällt die Berliner Mauer und Tausende von Berlinern bringen ihre Freude zum Ausdruck indem sie auf die Mauer steigen, die seit nun fast dreißig Jahren die Trennung der beiden deutschen Staaten symbolisiert.

On 9 November 1989, the German Democratic Republic (GDR) opens its frontiers to West Berlin and to the remainder of the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG), a move which prompts large numbers of mass demonstrations in front of the Brandenburg Gate.

On 9 November 1989, the Berlin Wall falls and thousands of Berliners express their joy by climbing the Wall, the symbol of the separation of the two German States for almost 30 years.

Am 10. November 1989, nach der Öffnung der Grenzen der Deutschen Demokratischen Republik (DDR), begrüßt die französische Tageszeitung Le Figaro den Fall der Berliner Mauer und erinnert an die Rolle Egon Krenz’, Generalsekretär der Sozialistischen Einheitspartei Deutschlands (SED), im Öffnungsprozess der DDR.

On 11 November 1989, after the fall of the Berlin Wall, the French daily newspaper Le Figaro leads with the symbolic end of the European Economic Community (EEC) and the birth of a new Europe.

On 1 January 1990, two months after the fall of the Berlin Wall, thousands of Berliners joyfully take part in New Year celebrations at the wall that had come to symbolise the separation of the two German states for almost 30 years.

Diese Archivaufnahmen zeigen die Geschichte der Berliner Mauer, von ihrem Bau im August 1961 bis zur ihrem Fall am 9. November 1989. Ein Jahr später, am 3. Oktober 1990, feiert Deutschland begeistert seine Wiedervereinigung.

In this interview excerpt, Jacques Delors, President of the Commission of the European Communities from 1985 to 1995, discusses the statement that he made for the television channel Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen (ZDF) following the fall of the Berlin Wall.