Ambassadors of France and Germany hope for reconciliation in Cyprus on anniversary of Elysée Treaty [video]
The Ambassadors of France and Germany to Cyprus, Salina Grenet-Catalano and Anke Schlimm. Screenshot via YouTube/CNA
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The history of each country is different, but the reconciliation of France and Germany shows that two formerly enemy countries can overcome their disagreements through concrete actions of peace and reconciliation, the Ambassadors of France and Germany to Cyprus, Salina Grenet-Catalano and Anke Schlimm, said on Saturday in a statement on the occasion of the 59th anniversary of the Treaty of the Elysée, marking the reconciliation between Germany and France.
Moreover they expressed hope that Cyprus can one day experience such reconciliation within itself and with all its neighbours.”
The Treaty of the Elysée was signed in 1963, eighteen years after the end of the Second World War, by French President Charles de Gaulle and German Chancellor Konrad Adenauer.
In their statement the two Ambassadors said, among other things, that Franco-German cooperation has become an everyday reality.
“It is not surprising that Paris was the destination of the first official foreign visit of the new German Chancellor Olaf Scholz. Like French President Emmanuel Macron flew to Berlin for his first official visit in 2017,” they noted.
They also stressed that today, the focus is on the joint efforts of Germany and France for a united and strong Europe.
Moreover they said that in 2003, it was decided to publish a common history book, “Histoire/Geschichte”, “which enabled the harmonisation of our school textbooks thanks to a shared vision of a common history, while it had previously too often been rewritten through a national prism.”
The two Ambassadors also noted that since 1963, more than 9 million young French and Germans have participated in exchanges programmes.
Cyprus has been divided since 1974, when Turkey invaded and occupied its northern third. Repeated rounds of UN-led peace talks have so far failed to yield results.
Source: CNA/MK/EPH/2022
ENDS, CYPRUS NEWS AGENCY
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