Former foes unite in Paris to mark end of World War I

[Darsh]

German Chancellor Angela Merkel has taken part in ceremonies in Paris to honour the victims of World War I alongside French President Nicolas Sarkozy, becoming the first German leader to do so.

French President Nicolas Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angela Merkel met at the foot of the Arc de Triomphe in Paris on Wednesday to mark 91 years since the end of the First World War on November 11, 1918.

The event came just two days after the pair attended massive ceremonies in Berlin to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall.

Though previously centred on France’s victory over German troops, the focus of Armistice Day ceremonies has gradually shifted towards a new era of Franco-German friendship after decades of hostility. This year's event marked the first time a German leader took part in the commemorations with the French head of state.

Sarkozy described the German chancellor’s presence during the ceremony as “an exceptional gesture of friendship”, while Merkel expressed her “sincerest gratitude” at being invited. Both stressed the senseless horror and killing that the two World Wars had brought upon their countries and the world during the first half of the 20th century, and paid homage to the millions of soldiers who lost their lives in the trenches.

The two leaders together rekindled the flame on the tomb of the Unknown Soldier, surrounded by a division of the Franco-German Brigade and officers from both countries’ armed forces.

After the death of France's last Great War veteran Lazare Ponticelli last year, Sarkozy had said he wanted to make November 11 “a day of Franco-German reconciliation, to build a joint future”.

“With the death of the last French veteran died the last witness who could cry out with strength: Never Again”, said the French president. “It is when all the witnesses have died that we must remember. We are expressing, the Chancellor and I, the memories in our hearts”, he added.
Speaking in turn, Angela Merkel stressed that Germany “will never forget the suffering inflicted by Germans on the French people”.

“To deal with our own history is the only way to draw the lessons necessary to shape the future”, she declared, adding that “the force of reconciliation will enable us to take up new challenges, together”.

Both leaders ended their speeches with the phrase: "Long live France, long live Germany, long live Franco-German friendship".

After a rough start, the relationship between the two leaders has recently developed into a strong partnership, leading some to talk of a “Franco-German honeymoon”. The pair have launched multiple diplomatic initiatives together, and are expected to announce a raft of joint measures early next year to further boost cooperation between the two countries.

http://www.france24.com/en/20091111-...ship?autoplay=

The next step will be to build a German monument in Paris and a French monument in Berlin to reinforce the symbol of the Franco-German relationships.

[Ahlerich]

curious what that german monument in paris would be

[Darsh]

curious what that german monument in paris would be

A twin of the Brandenburg Gate in Paris and there will have a twin of the Eiffel tower in Berlin for example.

[Rapax]

A twin of the Brandenburg Gate in Paris and there will have a twin of the Eiffel tower in Berlin for example.

Uh, when you say "twin" you don't actually mean 1:1 copies, do you? Not that I see why we'd need monuments for that, it's not a historical event, it's a process.

[CtrlAltDe1337]

A twin of the Brandenburg Gate in Paris and there will have a twin of the Eiffel tower in Berlin for example.

That would just look tacky imo.

[Darsh]

That would just look tacky imo.

Or we could build a modern monument in these two cities: a statue of Merkel with Sarkozy in Paris and in Berlin.

[Ahlerich]

Or we could build a modern monument in these two cities: a statue of Merkel with Sarkozy in Paris and in Berlin.

there is no artist that would be able to make this look pretty

[I Heart Romans]

Or we could build a modern monument in these two cities: a statue of Merkel with Sarkozy in Paris and in Berlin.

You can build a statue of Merkel, but a statue of Sarkozy isn't possible, it would be more like a bollard, the guys too small.

[Exarch]

you know, it's funny
usually whenever i play as the holy roman empire in M2:TW, i'm just content havin france and germany and northern italy and making the rest of the world my vassals

[Ahlerich]

you know, it's funny
usually whenever i play as the holy roman empire in M2:TW, i'm just content havin france and germany and northern italy and making the rest of the world my vassals

easiest way to defend the hre that way. geographic reasons. i hear you. although might as well take whole italy and scandinavia. no modesty required sire

[Exarch]

easiest way to defend the hre that way. geographic reasons. i hear you. although might as well take whole italy and scandinavia. no modesty required sire

that's the spirit

@topic
its always good to see 2 former foes becoming fwends

[Ahlerich]

yep. now we can gang up and finally crush great britain and share it equally. france can have the isle of man and germany the other 2 islands

[Thorn777]

@CtrlAltDe1337

Well the French always wanted our Brandenburg Gate. Napoleon stole the chariot on top, and it took the Franco-Prussian war +- 100 years later to recover it from the Louvre basement.

@OP

IMO good idea, but why not raise the same big old Charlemagne/Keizer Karl statue in both cities.

Like these in my second hometown Nijmegen (imperial city).



or

[Stavroforos]

Always nice to see European cooperation and friendship, though I'd hope that if monuments were made in honor of this cooperation they would be on a small scale and original works.

[removeduser_487563287433]

http://www.france24.com/en/20091111-...ship?autoplay=

The next step will be to build a German monument in Paris and a French monument in Berlin to reinforce the symbol of the Franco-German relationships.

And you wonder why we hate the EU.

[Stavroforos]

And you wonder why we hate the EU.

Because they...build monuments....?

[Bwaho]

Because they...build monuments....?

Britain's old divide and conquer, balance of power scheme

[Stavroforos]

Britain's old divide and conquer, balance of power scheme

I thought that only worked back in the day because Britain was a "superpower". Surely there's no reason for it now when Britain is no better than France or Germany.

[Dr. Croccer]

Why not make a giant arrow in both cities, pointing towards the ground, bearing the inscription ''we nearly had this''? The one in Berlin in French and the one in Paris in German.

[Von Reichgraf]

pfft. everybody knows the germans are genetically programmed to push for paris twice a century. 2014, just you wait.