 Mr. Chairman, dear Jill, dear David, ladies and gentlemen, This summer, 50 years ago, I came the first time to France. I went to the summer school of Lysée Carnot in Cannes and I fall immediately in love with the country. Also, because I strongly remember the fate of my family, my ancestors had come from France as French Huguenots and So in a certain way a circle got closed The following year, 1964, I went with my form to Paris One morning when we visited the center of Paris, I saw President Charles de Gaulle from a distance of two meters when he left with his wife the service in Notre Dame What is, yeah And during that time in Paris One night we wanted to go out We were in the eastern part of Paris Long distance to go to the more interesting places and When we left the USO still on the other side of the street we discovered in the window four or five girls in the second floor Looking down to us and with our very poor French we started to try a conversation with them and all of a sudden a Man appeared in the window and we were ready to to get on flight But he said what's going on and we said we would like to invite the girls But one of them is saying she is engaged and they cannot come and then the men said From which country are you from Germany you girls go down. I have been a forced labor Man in Germany. They treated me. Well, you go out with the Germans So two minutes later the four girls appeared on the street We had a wonderful evening and I Tell you we brought back the girls unharmed Wonderful unforgettable evening what has changed in the meantime in 50 years the great success story for me is That the people have come together. This is an incredible story. I remember the first years when I traveled France they kept a distance even when you spoke their language Today, it's completely different the lessons of history are understood in both countries and the French have made an extraordinary move also, thanks to German German French cooperation on the level of use the exchange of the cities and But the knowledge of languages is bored 20% of Germans Say they Understand French or speak French which I doubt and on the French side 15% say it. I Doubt that also The problem for me in the long run and and this is also my personal experience in professional life. I Find that the Paris society The elite is self-centered still These are Following analysis is about 10,000 people Who over? Generations have the control of the country for me. This is still a problem this Inward-looking Part of French society So there is a big gap between what I'm saying about the behavior of the French Population and of the political class of the country in comparison the the German society Still is more open When you are good enough you can make in Germany still a Fantastic careers from from bottom up to top. I give you two three examples Caught back who just resigned as minister present of Ryan and Pellet in it By by training by formation and electrician He told me once as he as with this country is bordering France He said impossible for me to make a comparable career in France a second example René Obermann CIO of telecom He started to study two three semesters then he started a career on its own and today is a Chairman of one of the most important Industries of Germany and the third example the former chairman of Deutsche Bank Hilmar copper an apprentice in the in the bank one day making the full career up to see a CEO I don't see comparable careers in France In other context, I will come back to that What I observe as a journalist at the same time over this long period is that the picture of France in Germany is Getting less precise During the last years whenever the French were Engaged in military things a good a part of my colleagues starts to write and continues to write Gordon Assion this from a German perspective is not a very nice expression and from my Professor and fry book where I studied romance languages. I know that a Gordon Assion Was used by the goal only once it is nothing The French would say themselves. So I tell my colleagues in Germany be cautious be aware be sensible and Treat treat the the French well So I observe a certain rise of cliches and Maybe it has to do with a Development when I gave you that introduction because it's it shows the difference such such a situation today unthinkable because to meet Somebody from the other nation is no problem today but When you are getting used to it, it can be boring over the time when you have no new ideas No new initiatives and that is for me one of the problems of French-German partnership these days I observed in Germany during the last weeks very often the title Marriage door golden marriage Be cautious with it When you are married 50 years you have not very much time before you so This is not a very good picture What I what I see is that The exchange in civilization is going down Much less interest for the literature of the other much less Interest for for film when I was 20 years old La nouvelle vague the French film was very important for me. I don't see something Comparable only recently this success, but this is another story This film about the handicapped Yes, yes, which was in in France an extraordinary success, but also in in Germany in terms of film and books, but this is a Singular case and also music Chanson In the 60 in the radio in TV You could hear it every day today. I could wait for you with you for hours Listening to a German radio station to hear a French song. So Something has happened not to the not to the advantage as my the speaker before me said There are two very different countries to to very to very different Nations and I would compare the job here. I have another accent like than you I See I see a very important role for the two countries to organize Them stamps for the future the context of Europe is important, but in certain situations. It's too large I think there is an ongoing obligation for the French and the Germans to organize their daily cooperation So in a to put it in a picture It is as if you work In a cathedral to rebuild it to restore Cathedral Whether you take rames or a race or Colonia you have to work on it every day and it's the same With the French and the Germans You never can be sure that things are going automatically. You have to organize it. It's a daily Job like it might happen in elbows industries where the Germans and the French with the others are working together or in the German French Brigade For me the French and this is Lisa compliment. They are the stronger Europeans They are thinking strong more strongly than the Germans in historical categories Where and they have the will to lead As we have seen on several occasions during the last years If I would be a French I would be really disappointed about the Germans in military Things and I fully understand that they are now looking For closer cooperation with the Great Britain or with United States and In Germany When the more Mali operation started one thing has been overlooked That day had a bigger amplitude because Not only in Mali a military operation from the French started But also in Somalia and an aircraft or an elicoptet area carrier was At the coast so the French unfortunately the operation in Somalia failed, but you could see the will and You have to understand from the German side French symbolism to show that one is able to have two very delicate military operations in another continent Thousands of miles apart This has not been seen in Germany, but I find it important that the French at least wanted to give that signal Which was a signal for their own country, but also for the other powers in Europe and I'm sure that the Americans Have clearly seen it, but it was not discussed in Germany The deficit in military terms in in Germany goes on. It's still a consequence of the Third Reich We have we had the tendency For long period to overdo in military things ending in the catastrophe of Hitler and now we are going to the to the other side and the old Quotation from churches seems to be true you have either them Here or down at your feet. So What I want is that my country finds a middle position in these things And and this means for me to be with the others Remember 20 20 years ago when the Germans made the first attempts to be in Normandy when Allied landing was commemorated Now practical situations to have Normandy in today would be there and Germany is not there and I personally regret that deeply on the other hand We have a still a liking to go our own way when it's in our interest, I think for Europe it was a Near to a catastrophe that after Fukushima the Germans Took their own conclusions and did not care about Europe not about France, but also not about the energy problems of Europe and I say that because Europe has started as you said in the 1950s with cooperation in energy and This was a clear will to overcome the national The national Position in energy energy questions, which very often had led to wars between Germany and France Very briefly German economy economical dynamics Are an opportunity for for Europe, but also danger because we have We have problems to To to explain it to others The fact that the Greece Greeks are showing the German swastika is clearly showing a lack of communication And I think this is a German problem all over the places. I take that very seriously because I see I Mentioned the Inward-looking political class of Paris I See the the danger for Europe there and particularly for French-German relationship that the French society in a certain way is in a blockade France is not able to make the necessary steps to reform the its economy and The social status all governments whether they are from the left or from the right fear the street this is very clear and So unemployment in France is rising and What you can gain in industries the Germans have the double value of the French 26% of our National wealth is coming from industrial production in France only half of it and I fear that this Gap is widening Have I still time left some minutes? Few minutes. Yeah, I hurry up More important for me are the changes in Demography this is for me the most serious problem In Europe, I give you two figures in the old European economic community We had 180,000 Muslims in the mid 80s Now in the European Union the figure is nearly 20 million This is a massive change Which neither the governments nor the populations are Realizing and their consequences there is a tromblum on the terror in the societies, but Probably the biggest problem and this may Bring us France in Germany in different directions migration for France is coming from the Arab countries and from Francophonie african and the Germans are getting the people from turkey these are two completely Different directions we have in Germany now three million Turks or many of them have passports now, but three million and Foreign population in Germany within a very short period is up to 12 percent at a population of 82 million now and In big cities Berlin are the big towns Every second child now is born from a family where One or two parents have a migration background So a big challenge To bring those people into the society in terms in terms that the society is functioning By the way, the the Berlin airport problem has to do with it when you have not a Working force from from one single country, but from 70 80 nations You must construct much more simple you cannot be that soft Sophisticated like the Germans want to be and every day on the airport five changes in construction. This cannot work and You can see that it is a problem for a population There was a book last year from a former member of the Berlin government He wrote a book with the title Germany is on the way to disappear meaning these changes through demography Nearly two million copies of the book were sold this year From Berlin from a district a mayor wrote a similar book Buschkowski 200,000 copies within several weeks. So you see it's a real concern for the population and A good part of my colleagues in the German National Press says these are right-wing arguments don't listen to them I find it's a grave mistake not to allow open discussion Okay, I finish here on demography and I come to the end of my of my remarks Germany and France as the nations are undergoing deep changes and Nobody knows where this will end up it's a risk and It's an opportunity, but you have to to form it Just to wait and to let let it happen will not keep the lines the way it it worked over a period of 50 years the French have make a point saying that only cooperation can organize The future of Europe in the world. I agree to it the Germans has have to accept the military role also in the future and and Let me finish with Jessica and Elmo Schmidt They met recently and They came to the conclusion that no No country of the two can lead But there is an obligation to work together. Thank you