CDU Executive Committee (Berlin, September 5, 2011)

As prepared for delivery.

Bundeskanzlerin Merkel,
Generalsekretär Gröhe,
Dr. Lammert,
Bundesminister, Ministerpräsidenten, Mitglieder des Bundestags,
Verehrte Mitglieder des CDU-Bundesvorstands,
meine Damen und Herren,

es ist eine große Ehre für mich, heute gemeinsam mit Ihnen darüber sprechen zu dürfen, wo wir zehn Jahre nach den Terroranschlägen vom 11. September 2001 stehen. An diesem Tag fanden Menschen aus über 90 Ländern den Tod, darunter auch elf Deutsche. Der schöne, klare Septembermorgen war die Kulisse für Bilder von Tod und Zerstörung, die sich unauslöschlich in das kollektive Bewusstsein der Welt eingebrannt haben. Der 11. September, oder auch 9/11, wie wir in den Vereinigten Staaten sagen, hat den Weg in ein gemeinsames, globales Vokabular gefunden. Die ganze Welt war Zeuge der Ereignisse, die sich in New York, in Washington und auf einem Feld in Pennsylvania abspielten. Es gibt unter den über 20-jährigen wahrscheinlich kaum jemanden in unseren beiden Ländern, der sich nicht ganz genau daran erinnern kann, wo er war, als er von den Anschlägen erfuhr. Ich selbst war gerade nach einem Transatlantik-Flug in London gelandet, als ich die Nachrichten hörte. Meine Frau Tammy war mit unseren vier Kindern bei uns zuhause in New Jersey, auf der anderen Seite der Bucht in New York. Die dramatischen Auswirkungen der Anschläge haben wir beide unmittelbar gespürt. In unserem Wohnort, von dem aus man gut nach Manhattan pendeln kann, haben Familien ihre Mütter, Väter, Schwestern oder Brüder verloren.

Ich weiß, dass die Reaktionen hier in Deutschland sehr schnell und vor allem von Herzen kamen. Die Kollegen von der Botschaft und dem Konsulat – amerikanische Diplomaten, die zu dieser Zeit hier arbeiteten, und auch unsere unschätzbaren Ortskräfte – haben mir von Anrufen, Blumen, Bildern, Beileidsschreiben und Hilfsangeboten für die Familien der Opfer berichtet, die unmittelbar nach den Anschlägen zahlreich eintrafen.

Diese Gesten waren deutlicher Ausdruck der engen und tiefen Freundschaft unserer Länder. Sie haben uns so sehr bewegt, dass wir eine Auswahl der bei uns eingegangenen Zeichen der Unterstützung in der Botschaft ausgestellt haben.

I am honored to join you today to discuss where we stand ten years after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. On that day, the citizens of more than 90 countries, including 11 Germans, were murdered.  The bright, clear September morning was a backdrop for images of death and destruction that have been indelibly burned into the world’s collective consciousness.  September 11, 2001, or 9/11 as we say in the United States, has entered into a global common vocabulary.  The whole world was witness to the events as they unfolded in New York City, in Washington and in a field in Pennsylvania.  There is probably hardly a person above the age of 20 in either of our two countries who does not remember exactly where they were when they heard the news about what had happened.  I myself had just gotten off a transatlantic flight to London when I heard the news.  My wife Tammy was at home with our four children in New Jersey, across the bay from New York City.  We both felt, however, the overwhelming and immediate impact of the attacks.  In our community, within commuting distance of Manhattan, families lost fathers and mothers and brothers and sisters. 

I know that the reaction here in Germany was also instantaneous and heartfelt.  Colleagues at the Embassy and Consulate – both American diplomats who served here at the time and our talented locally employed staff – have told me about the phone calls, the flowers, the drawings and letters of condolence, and the offers to help the families of the victims that started pouring in almost immediately.  Those gestures spoke volumes about the depth and the breadth of the friendship between our two countries.  We found them so moving that we set up a display of some of the tokens of support we received at the Embassy.

And now for the tenth  time, this year our friends and partners here and around the world will remember with us again the victims of terrorism – not just those who died on September 11, 2001, but also those who lost their lives in London, Bali, Madrid, Mumbai, Kampala and other places around the world at the hands of terrorists.  The bright, hopeful faces of the young people who were murdered this summer in Norway have also become a part of our collective memory about the horrible results of extremist and violent ideologies.  Terrorists use these ideologies to pull people apart and to pit those of one religion or ethnic group or political ideology against another.  

Over the past ten years, we have had many discussions in the United States, but also in Germany and other countries around the world, about how we can counter those who perceive differences between people as an excuse for violence.  The events of September 11 were a catalyst for discussions – perhaps long overdue – regarding integration, assimilation and tolerance.  

As we all know, there are many tough issues at stake and many questions that we need to ask ourselves and to discuss openly.  For example, what motivates intelligent young people to commit mass murder?  And more broadly, how do we respond to barbarous assaults on our societies without endangering the very freedoms that form the basis of how we live and work and worship and go about our daily lives.  These are the very qualities that make our communities strong and resilient. And so, the events of September 11, 2001 were also a catalyst for discussion about what security means in the 21^st century.   

A few days after September 11, Chancellor Merkel, you stood with your predecessor and other German leaders alongside my predecessor Ambassador Dan Coats at the Brandenburg Gate.  Two hundred thousand people had gathered there for a memorial service.  That ceremony underlined our common humanity.  People here and in the United States – and I think people everywhere – felt wounded and vulnerable and at risk.  One of the German staffers at our Embassy told me how surprised she was when Ambassador Coats and his wife insisted on walking the few blocks from where our Embassy used to be, close to the Friedrichstrasse S-Bahn station, to the memorial ceremony at Brandenburg Gate.  The horrors of September 11 were still so immediate that security was on everybody’s mind. 

The theme of that ceremony at Brandenburg Gate was “Keine Macht dem Terror” but I think it was clear to everybody that the struggle against an enemy that was so full of hate would not be easy.  We would have to do more than just say we were against terrorism. This struggle would demand from all of us, as Ambassador Coats said, and I quote, “courage, patience and fortitude.”  And looking back at the past six and a half decades of our shared history as allies it is clear that Germans and Americans possess these qualities in abundance.    

I know that in our determination to safeguard the safety of our citizens, America has taken steps in the past ten years that sometimes even our closest friends have not always agreed with.  And we continue to engage in important and sometimes challenging discussions in our pursuit of this goal – the first responsibility of all governments.  I think of specific issues such as data privacy or military deployments.  But I think it is important to remember the gravity of the challenges we faced and continue to be confronted with. 

How can we adapt institutions and partnerships to make them even more resilient, so that we can address new challenges as they arise without compromising basic and enduring principles?  How can we address short-term and immediate emergency situations and at the same time put into place policies that mesh with our long-term strategic goals?  And here, I think not only of emergency situations involving terrorism; I think too of our responses to natural disasters, humanitarian crises, and other catastrophic situations.  Since taking office, President Obama has worked to restore a positive vision of American leadership in the world — leadership defined, not by threats and dangers, but by security, opportunity and dignity.

As I said, our two countries have faced challenges of magnitude before.  One such extraordinary moment began in 1945, in the wreckage of one of the greatest cataclysms in human history. World War II thoroughly consumed the old international system; and it fell to a group of American and European statesmen to assume the roles of architects and builders of a new model for upholding international peace and prosperity.  The solutions to these past challenges seem perfectly clear now with six and a half decades of hindsight.  But it was anything but clear for the men and women who lived and worked in those times of unprecedented change.

Look back as well to the Berlin crisis when a Wall went up that for 28 long years divided a city and a country and a continent.  Today, 50 years later, people still debate what might have happened had the United States and the Western allies reacted differently.  As President Kennedy said, "We could have sent tanks over and knocked the Wall down. What then? They build another one back a hundred yards? We knock that one down, then we go to war?" Another world war with weapons and tanks and more graveyards full of soldiers and civilians or even nuclear cataclysm?  In a press conference soon after the Wall went up, President Kennedy was asked about the future of Berlin. The very next question was about bomb shelters.  Many people believed that the Cold War could indeed very quickly become very hot.  The father of one of our diplomats at the Embassy was stationed in Bamberg in 1961.  He remembers moving with his tank unit one morning to the Federal Republic’s border with then Czechoslovakia in anticipation that it indeed would become hot.  That said, one cannot downplay the consequences or the price paid by the scores of people who were killed as a direct result of the Wall and the oppressive policies of the East German government.  

They paid with their lives and millions of others paid with their souls.  The ultimate story of the Berlin Wall is that it was built for the same reason it collapsed.  It was built to contain East Germans, two thousand of whom were fleeing every day; and it fell for the same reason.  It could no longer hold back those for whom the love of liberty was stronger than the will of tyranny.  

We often talk of the common values that Germany and the United States share.  History has obviously delivered many examples that underline those values and the resilience and strength of our partnership.  But there have also been a few very exceptional occasions when that message has been put into words in very unmistakable and eloquent terms.  One such occasion was when Chancellor Adenauer addressed the two houses of the U.S. Congress in 1957.  He was the first German chancellor to do so and he used that opportunity to underline how deeply related the basic principles characterizing American policy and German policy were.

Bundeskanzler Adenauer hat etwas über den Freiheitswillen seines Volkes gesagt: „Freiheit, Friede, Einheit“, sagte er, „das sind die Ziele unserer Politik, einer Politik also, die die großen Werte verwirklichen will, die den Fortschritt der Menschheit bestimmen.“ Aber wir wissen, dass mit dem sich damals abzeichnenden Kalten Krieg und dem Eisernen Vorhang, der sich über Europa legte, es alles andere als wahrscheinlich war, dass die Freiheit letztendlich obsiegen würde. Vor zwei Jahren sprach wieder ein deutsches Regierungsoberhaupt vor dem Kongress in meinem Heimatland. Frau Bundeskanzlerin, ich hatte das Privileg, bei Ihrer Rede vor beiden Häusern des Kongresses anwesend sein zu dürfen.  Das Bild, das Sie von den Chancen und Herausforderungen der heutigen Zeit gezeichnet haben – vor dem Hintergrund der Anstrengungen und des Erfolges Deutschlands, allen seinen Bürgern die Freiheit zu geben – war wieder ein ausdrucksstarkes Plädoyer für Menschenrechte und Menschenwürde. Die Mauern, denen wir uns heute gegenübersehen, sind in der Tat weitaus weniger sichtbar als die Berliner Mauer es war. Aber dennoch fordern sie uns genauso heraus.

Chancellor Adenauer spoke of his people’s will for freedom.  “Freedom, peace, unity” he said, “these are the aims of our policy, a policy designed to give effect to the great ideals that determine the progress of humanity.”   (Freiheit, Friede, Einheit – das sind die Ziele unserer Politik, einer Politik also, die großen Werte verwirklichen will, die den Fortschritt der Menschheit bestimmen.)  But we know that as the Iron Curtain descended across Europe and the Cold War began to take shape, it was far from evident that freedom would ultimately triumph. Two years ago, another German chancellor spoke before the Congress of my country.  Chancellor Merkel, I had the privilege of attending your presentation before the Joint Session of Congress.  Your overview of the opportunities and challenges we face today, framed in the context of Germany’s struggle and ultimate success in providing freedom to all of its citizens, was again an eloquent argument for human rights and dignity.  The walls we face today are indeed less visible than the Berlin Wall but they are equally challenging.

It is essential that we approach the challenges of the 21^st century with the same commitment and resolve as in the past, but also with openness to the new parameters of the world we live in.  The Muslim chaplain at Georgetown University in Washington participates frequently in interdenominational services and community events.  I like the approach he describes. “People talk about tearing down walls of separation,” Imam Hendi says. “I don't want to tear down walls but rather turn those walls into tables that bring us all together where we can enjoy the blessing of God on this Earth. Our ability to bring about a peaceful world depends on how we can work together side by side as partners.”

And I believe we are doing just that.  Long-standing partnerships have been deepened and extended in many significant ways and also new partnerships have been forged.  Almost all of the broad foreign policy and national security initiatives of both your country and mine support more focused counterterrorism goals.  They do so by addressing the political, economic and social conditions that can sometimes fuel violent extremism and push certain individuals into the arms of al-Qa’ida.  I think we have learned ten years after 9/11 that counterterrorism alone dare not define our foreign policies; rather, it must be a vital part of our broader national security interests.  For example, the promotion of the peaceful resolution of political disputes and grievances, the implementation of trade and economic policies that generate the growth that can lift people out of poverty, support of universal human rights and good governance practices – all such initiatives address the most basic needs and rights of people everywhere; and by doing so, they also help to undermine violent extremism. 

Peaceful political, economic, and social progress negates the claim that the only way to achieve change is through violence.  It is a powerful antidote to the disillusionment and sense of powerlessness that can make some individuals more susceptible to violent ideologies.  The extraordinary political changes that are sweeping the Middle East and North Africa mark an historic moment of opportunity. 

“Experts” on the Arab world worried for years that revolutions would bring about new violent jihadist regimes.  But what is happening is different.  New structures are emerging that have nothing to do with al Qaida.  Ordinary citizens are leading change; and they seem to want many of the things we do, such as peace and freedom from oppression.  While we are all worried about what will happen to the economy and jobs and currencies during unsettled times, the changes in North Africa give us reason to hope that the situation in the world is improving and that, despite temporary setbacks, it will continue in a positive direction.

In vielen Bereichen stehen wir vor großen Herausforderungen, aber ich bin Optimist, wie viele Amerikaner. Wie ich bereits sagte, erinnert uns der 11. September an die grundlegenden Werte, die wir mit unseren Freunden und Partnern teilen. Wie der große Mann, nach dem dieses Gebäude benannt wurde, einmal sagte: „Man darf niemals ‚zu spät‘ sagen. Auch in der Politik ist es niemals zu spät. Es ist immer Zeit für einen neuen Anfang.“ Es ist natürlich nicht zu spät, aber jetzt ist der richtige Zeitpunkt. Jetzt müssen wir leidenschaftlich sein – genauso leidenschaftlich, wie sich Konrad Adenauer für die Wiedergeburt Deutschlands und Europas und der demokratischen Welt an sich eingesetzt hat. Diese Leidenschaft, in Verbindung mit dem Mitgefühl, das der 11. September in uns wachruft, brauchen wir heute.

We face difficult challenges on many fronts but I choose to be an optimist, as is common among Americans.  As I have said, September 11 reminds us of the fundamental values we share with our friends and allies.  As the great man for whom this building is named once said, “Never say it’s too late.  In politics, as well, it is never too late. There is always a time for a new beginning.” (“Man darf niemals 'zu spät' sagen. Auch in der Politik ist es niemals zu spät. Es ist immer Zeit für einen neuen Anfang.”)  It is indeed not too late but now is the moment.  This is something that we need to be passionate about – in the same way that Chancellor Adenauer was passionate about the rebirth of Germany and Europe and the community of democracies as a whole.   That same passion, combined with the compassion that September 11 brings to mind, is called for today.

Vielen Dank für Ihre Aufmerksamkeit!