Frank-Walter Steinmeier

“From my point of view, we have the two communities: the tech community on one side and the rather social-scientific, philosophical community on the other side. We have, from my impression, a disconnect between the two sides.”

“I feel that we Germans are spending less and less time talking to each other. And even less time listening to each other.”

“Since 1998, I have served my country as a member of four cabinets and as the leader of the parliamentary opposition.”

“Twenty-five years after the fall of the Berlin Walland the lifting of the iron curtain, troublespots abound: the Middle East and parts of Africa lack a stable regional security architecture; in east Asia, nationalist tendencies and competing ambitions are threatening peace and stability in the region and beyond.”

“Our democracy is as strong as we make it. Its founding principle is that we voice our opinions, and that we are willing to argue for what we believe in.”

“Germany's historical responsibility will not expire. We want to live up to it - and you should judge us on it.”

“We in Europe must not indulge the illusion that we could shut ourselves away from the world if it goes to pieces, and maybe offer a bit of humanitarian aid.”

“I wish I could say that we Germans have learned from our history once and for all, but I cannot say that when hatred is spreading.”

“Responsibility is always about concrete action.”

“Following its peaceful reunifica'tion in 1990, Germany was on track to become an economic giant that had little in the way of foreign policy.”

“Seventeen million people around the world lost their lives in the first world war, countless suffered and were marred for life.”

“The history of the outbreak of war 100 years ago and of the collapse of the fragile balance of power in Europe in the summer of 1914 is a disturbing tale of the failure of the governing elites and the military, but also of diplomacy.”

“The question that stands in the foreground is not 'Do we need this technology?' No one denies the great chances and the great opportunities that we have in the fight against poverty, the handling of climate issues, the fight against sickness.”

“But Germany is a reflective power: even as it adapts, a belief in the importance of restraint, deliberation, and peaceful negotiation will continue to guide its interactions with the rest of the world.”

“Germany's path to greater military assertiveness has not been linear, and it never will be. Germans do not believe that talking at roundtables solves every problem, but neither do they think that shooting does.”