Steinmeier calls for courage and optimism

Berlin (dpa) – Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier has urged society in Germany to show courage at Christmas. “We need courage to make a fresh start again and again,” he said in his Christmas address, adding that this applied “to the big challenges we take on as a society and to the small things where each and every one of us does their best”. Steinmeier said that Christmas was a time of community and solidarity, a solidarity that extended not only to family and friends but also to Ukrainians who had suffered nearly four years of Russian aggression. Europeans had become newly aware of their strength and their values, said the Federal President, adding that freedom and human dignity, a just peace and democratic self-determination were principles they would not give up. 

Meanwhile, Federal Chancellor Friedrich Merz issued a video message in which he recalled the Federal Government’s responsibility for Germany and for Europe as a whole. “What is at stake in these months and years is the freedom, peace, security and prosperity of our entire continent. In this spirit, we are committed to Germany and to Europe. We have a vital role to play,” Merz said, adding that his government was doing its duty. “We will continue to work with patience and perseverance to move Germany forward.”