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Gauck: Germany "must not back away"

Emily SherwinFebruary 22, 2014

In an interview with Deutsche Welle, German President Joachim Gauck argues that Germany can no longer shy away from its international responsibilities - even if that means resorting to military force.

https://p.dw.com/p/1BDvB
Joachim Gauck, DW Interview 21.02.2014 (Photo: Bundespresseamt / Jesco Denzel)
Image: Bundespresseamt/Jesco Denzel

Interview with the German President Joachim Gauck

On Friday, 21.02.2014, Joachim Gauck spoke to Dagmar Engel, the head of DW's Berlin studio, about Germany's role on the international stage. He expanded on his much-discussed speech at the Munich Security Conference, again calling on Germany to take more responsibility in world politics."Germany is mature and serves as a guarantor of stability and democracy, and we must not back away from these responsibilities," he said.

Referring to Germany's "dark past," Gauck told DW that "Germany is a completely different country than it was in between the two World Wars." He said that the country is now often regarded as a model of democracy.

Gauck argued that, in light of its changing international position, Germany should take on a mediating role in international conflict situations wherever it can and shouldn't shy away from using force if necessary. He said that Germany can hardly be indifferent to the events taking place in Ukraine, for example, and should instead "take on the role of mediator in cooperation with other European states" there.