Angela Merkel, a German politician who presided as chancellor of Germany from 2005 to 2021, was born on July 17, 1954, in Hamburg, West Germany.
Angela Merkel became chancellor on November 22, 2005, making history as the first woman and East German, and, also the youngest person (at 51) to ever hold the position. During the parliamentary elections held on September 27, 2009, her term was unequivocally extended.
Angela Merkel Quotes on Leadership
(Merkel joined the newly formed Democratic Awakening following the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989. Check out these inspiring words from Angela Merkel about freedom.)
Angela Merkel was a prominent figure in European politics while serving as Germany's first female chancellor and in February 1990 she was appointed the party's press secretary. She promoted austerity as a means of reviving the continent's battered economies.
She said that despite the dire humanitarian situation, Germany would remain open borders despite the worst refugee crisis to hit Europe since World War II.
"Always be more than you appear and never appear to be more than you are."
"I might bend, but I will never break because it’s in my nature as a strong woman.'
"The question is not whether we are able to change but whether we are changing fast enough."
"I never misunderstand myself. And I never saw anything wrong with ambition."
"Let us answer the terrorists by living our values with courage.
"We are responsible for each other. I am trying to convince doubters. There is still work to do."
"Whoever decides to dedicate their life to politics knows that earning money isn't the top priority."
"Maybe I've just become more hardened. The exposure to so many extreme situations tends to harden a person. You have to develop survival strategies."
"There is one red line that we should not cross. It is a commitment to human rights, the respect for the dignity of the human being. There should be no compromises."
"During the course of 1989, more and more East Germans lost their fears of the state's repression and chicanery and went out on the streets. There was no turning back then. It is thanks to their courage the Wall was opened."
"That is why everyone in politics, and we do it, must make sure that they do not depend on one single interest group. A good compromise is one where everybody makes a contribution."
"I said, yet again, for Germany, Europe is not only indispensable, it is part and parcel of our identity. We've always said German unity, European unity, and integration, that's two parts of one and the same coin. But we want, obviously, to boost our competitiveness."
"If we remind ourselves of the fact that every fifth American today rightly points and perhaps also with a certain degree of pride to his German ancestry or her German ancestry, we can safely say that we, indeed, share common roots."
"We've always had this experience that things take long, but I'm 100% convinced that our principles will in the end prevail. No one knew how the Cold War would end at the time, but it did end. This is within our living experience... I'm surprised at how fainthearted we sometimes are and how quickly we lose courage."
"It is always the case that when something emerges - which, of course, from the perspective of former West Germany looks very different - then people say, 'She hasn't told us this yet' and 'She hasn't told us that yet.' I don't know - maybe there are other things I didn't talk about because no one ever asked me."
Angela Merkel Quotes on Society
Angela Merkel pushed for the mass resettlement of people in Germany as hundreds of thousands of migrants arrived in the European Union escaping wars in Syria, Afghanistan, and other countries. To pass the risk to return to their violent nations, more than one million refugees reached Germany in just 2015 alone.
"I am not here for women only, but also for women"
"Very early, it became clear to me that East Germany could not function."
"Controversial disputes are a part of democratic culture."
"If we must now apologize for showing a friendly face in times of crisis, then this is not my country"
"I'm someone who is very supportive of us eliminating all discrimination."
"Germany wants peaceful coexistence of Muslims and members of other religions."
"Germany has become a country that many people abroad associate with hope."
"As far as an upper limit [on refugees] is concerned, my position is clear: I will not accept it."
"The only thing the East German system taught us was that we should never do it that way again."
"There must be zero tolerance towards all those who show no respect for the inalienable rights of the individual and who violate human rights."
"In order to maintain Europe in the long term, but above all to strengthen Europe in the long term, we must preserve and defend the achievements of European Integration."
"Ladies, it is not your education, status, or personality that has brought you here but the elegance of God which was still and still working upon you."
"We have shared responsibility for global climate; we have to reduce climate change below 2 degrees Celsius."
"After the reunification, there was a certain sense of foreignness because daily life in the former East German states was completely turned inside out - everything from the shops to the bureaucracy to the working world."
"I, fortunately, know very many people, and there are many, many more that I don't know and many politicians who stand up for the same values of democracy of liberal societies, of open societies of respect for the dignity of man."
"For my part, in everything I do, I aim to strengthen democracy in Germany and beyond. The United States is also a strong democracy. As we are seeing in Poland, for example, and also in Hungary, it is important that we have counterweights in democratic systems, and I believe they are still strong in America."
Angela Merkel Quotes on Freedom
Angela Merkel's political career was launched by the collapse of the Berlin Wall in November 1989. Merkel joined the newly formed party Demokratischer Aufbruch one month after the fall of the Berlin Wall; however, she did not take part in the mass festivities that night (DA, or in English 'Democratic Beginning').
In February 1990, she was named the party's press spokesperson by party leader Wolfgang Schnur.
"Each and everyone has the same right to freedom. "
"Democracy must be our answer to terrorism."
"The yearning for freedom cannot be contained by walls for long."
"Without freedom, the human mind is prevented from unleashing its creative force."
"We are a country based on democracy, tolerance, and openness to the world."
"Neither the chains of dictatorship nor the fetters of oppression can keep down the forces of freedom for long."
"We will be very persistent when it comes to enforcing freedom, justice, and self-determination on the European continent."
"Freedom is the very essence of our economy and society. Without freedom, the human mind is prevented from unleashing its creative force. But what is also clear is that this freedom does not stand alone. It is freedom in responsibility and freedom to exercise responsibility."
"The Freedom Bell in Berlin is, like the Liberty Bell in Philadelphia, a symbol which reminds us that freedom does not come about by itself. It must be struggled for and then defended anew every day of our lives."
"The G7 - and earlier, the G8 - were a group of countries that shared the same values with regard to freedom and democracy, and through the annexation of Crimea, Russia made it clear at a certain point that these values of keeping the peace, the integrity of the borders of a country were not being respected."
Angela Merkel Quotes on Economy
Both in 2011 and 2012, as well as again from 2014 through 2021, Angela Merkel presided as the senior G7 leader. She attained the record for the longest-tenured head of state in the EU in 2014.
Merkel declared in October 2018 that she would resign as CDU leader at the party convention and serve the fifth term as chancellor in the 2021 general election.
"The willingness to learn new skills is very high."
"A good compromise is one where everybody makes a contribution."
"It is a fact that, if I single out Germany, our rate of growth is too low and we have very high unemployment."
"I think that the EU with the Lisbon agenda has put the right emphasis on growth and employment. "
"Industrialized countries must take the responsibility of helping poorer countries in the climate change action plan."
"India needs jobs, Germany needs people, and collaboration is crucial to meet the demographic needs of both countries."
"I will not let anyone tell me we must spend more money. This crisis did not come about because we issued too little money but because we created economic growth with too much money and it was not sustainable growth."
"Eurobonds are absolutely wrong. In order to bring about common interest rates, you need similar competitiveness levels and similar budget situations. You don't get them by collectivizing debts."
"I will not let anyone tell me we must spend more money. This crisis did not come about because we issued too little money but because we created economic growth with too much money and it was not sustainable growth."
"We needed 40 years to overcome Eastern Germany. Sometimes in history, one has to be prepared for the long haul and not ask after four months if it still makes sense to keep up our demands."
"On the one hand, the financial projection is on the agenda - we will see if this problem can be resolved or not. I think it is a right idea to stage a special summit, which would deal with the question of priorities of European politics."
"Climate change knows no borders. It will not stop before the Pacific Islands and the whole of the international community here has to shoulder a responsibility to bring about sustainable development."
"The people in East Germany have lived through so many changes in the last 15 years like never before in the country, and they did this often with great enthusiasm. But in the west, we also have a high degree of transformations."
"I've spoken several times with Prime Minister Erdogan about relations between Turkey and Israel. I'm pleased that, following president Obama's visit to Israel, talks between Israel and Turkey are again taking place and hope that relations between them will further improve in the interest of both countries."
