Fort Benning and community leaders and German liaison officers gathered Oct. 3 to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the unification of West and East Germany during the annual German Unity Celebration at the Indianhead Community Center.
The German Army Liaison staff and their families host the event each year on post, which includes the playing of the U.S. and German anthems and a reception with traditional German food, beer and champagne.
Known by Germans as "Tag der Deutschen Einheit," the event observes the treaty between West and East Germany that went into effect Oct. 3, 1990, the day both countries officially became unified again after the Berlin Wall was torn down a year earlier. The national holiday is celebrated with a festival around Brandenburg Gate in Berlin.
Lt. Col. Thomas Harland, German Armor liaison officer, said the event is a way to remember one of the happiest moments in German history.
"Today we celebrate the reunification of the two Germanys, East and West, the peaceful revolution in 1989, the fall of the Berlin Wall and the achievement of German unity on Oct. 3, 1990," Harland said. "The fall of the Iron Curtain is one of the most vivid images and historic events of the last century. In one year, two separate states with hostile armies, competing economies and different social systems, emerged into one. The speed was so fast that many people after reunification tried to understand what happened."
According to the U.S. Diplomacy Center website, President George H.W. Bush and Secretary of State James Baker III endorsed German Chancellor Helmut Kohl's 1989 proposal seeking unity, despite resistance from Britain and France. U.S. and German diplomats worked collegially together on the Two Plus Four Agreement - Two Germanys and Four Allies, finally bringing an end to conflict that emerged in post-War Germany.
"Reunification wouldn't have been achieved without leadership and strong support of the United States of America," Harland said. "We couldn't have better friends and we express with great gratitude and it is our desire to share from our experience the vision of hope, unity and freedom. I hope German unity delivers a twofold message - a message of hope and a message of responsibility."
Maj. Jens Rohrmoser, German Infantry liaison officer, said celebrating German unification in the U.S. and especially at Fort Benning is a special time for the German LNO staff.
"Celebrating it among our friends, and especially our U.S. allies, really means a lot to us," Rohrmoser said. "Without the U.S. in the late 80s and early 90s, this would not have happened. We are grateful that the American people were helping us."
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