FDP: Shaping German foreign policy
The pro-business, liberal FDP is in the governing coalition. In its heyday, its foreign ministers influenced European history.
The party:
FDP
Free Democratic Party of Germany
Established:
1948
Members:
72,000
MPs in the Bundestag in the period:
-
Historic figures:
Theodor Heuss, first Federal President from 1949-1959
Walter Scheel, Foreign Minister (1969-1974) and Federal President (1974-1979)
Hans-Dietrich Genscher, Foreign Minister from 1974-1992 (longest-serving minister)
Profile: The FDP was founded in keeping with the longstanding tradition of liberal-conservative parties in Germany. It is committed to civil liberties and stands for economic liberalist and business-friendly attitudes. The FDP has helped govern Germany for a total of 46 years as a junior coalition partner in the Federal Government. For nearly quarter of a century, it defined what at the time was a fundamentally new approach to German foreign policy. This involved Walter Scheel and Hans-Dietrich Genscher consistently striving to resolve the Cold War through understanding and to end the division of Germany and Europe. The FDP is regarded as a centre-right party.
Website: www.fdp.de
Links to portraits of other political parties:
CDU/CSU , SPD, Greens, Linke, AfD
