Today marks the 30th anniversary of the opening of the Berlin Wall, when the Cold War split of Germany into East and West began to mend.
The occasion is bittersweet in the age of President Donald Trump bloom.bg/2X0C4Q1
The occasion is bittersweet in the age of President Donald Trump bloom.bg/2X0C4Q1
Three decades after the fall, German officials aren’t keen to show the U.S. much gratitude for the country’s reunification.
Who is to thank, then? bloom.bg/34Gg6EA
Who is to thank, then? bloom.bg/34Gg6EA
Despite what some Americans may think, the roles of Ronald Reagan and his successor, George H.W. Bush, probably aren’t significant enough to merit eternal gratitude bloom.bg/34Gg6EA 
In April 1987, Reagan implored Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev at an event in West Berlin to “tear down this wall.”
Reagan bravely defied the advice of his State department to say that line, but in reality it had no magical influence bloom.bg/34Gg6EA
Reagan bravely defied the advice of his State department to say that line, but in reality it had no magical influence bloom.bg/34Gg6EA
The Bush administration’s goal wasn’t to help the Germans reunite, but to preserve American dominance in Europe, using NATO as a vehicle bloom.bg/34Gg6EA
Yet Bush and the Soviet leaders were all overtaken by events.
It was Chancellor Helmut Kohl of West Germany that had the greatest degree of control over the reunification process bloom.bg/34Gg6EA
It was Chancellor Helmut Kohl of West Germany that had the greatest degree of control over the reunification process bloom.bg/34Gg6EA
There were two significant turning points after the wall came down where the Germans shaped their own destiny:
Nov. 28, 1989: Kohl seized leadership of the unification movement
July 16-17, 1990: Kohl struck a final deal with Gorbachev bloom.bg/34Gg6EA
Nov. 28, 1989: Kohl seized leadership of the unification movement
July 16-17, 1990: Kohl struck a final deal with Gorbachev bloom.bg/34Gg6EA
There is one American who ought to be thanked, however: Bruce Springsteen.
He and other Western cultural figures helped East Germans develop an appreciation for freedom bloom.bg/34Gg6EA
He and other Western cultural figures helped East Germans develop an appreciation for freedom bloom.bg/34Gg6EA
On July 19, 1988, Bruce Springsteen had a concert in East Berlin:
160,000 had tickets
100,000 without tickets gate-crashed
He made a short speech, in German: bloom.bg/34Gg6EA
160,000 had tickets
100,000 without tickets gate-crashed
He made a short speech, in German: bloom.bg/34Gg6EA
The energy of the East German people who flooded through the gates on Nov 9, 1989, and Kohl’s leadership created an outcome that probably wouldn’t have been possible had the process developed in summits and negotiating rooms rather than on the streets bloom.bg/34Gg6EA
