Paavo Väyrynen to the memorial ceremony of former Foreign Minister Hans-Dietrich Genscher of Germany

Press release 68/2016
15 April 2016

A state memorial ceremony will be organised in Bonn on 17 April to commemorate long-term Foreign Minister of the Federal Republic of Germany, Hans-Dietrich Genscher. Genscher died on 31 March at the age of 89. Finland will be represented at the memorial ceremony by former Foreign Minister Paavo Väyrynen.

Genscher served as Foreign Minister for 18 years between 1974 and 1992. Early in his term of office in 1975, he participated in the Conference on Security and Co-operation in Europe (CSCE) in Helsinki. His last years as Foreign Minister of the Federal Republic of Germany were marked by the fall of the Berlin Wall and the end of a divided Germany.

Genscher and Väyrynen served as foreign ministers at the same time for about 10 years. They met several times in Finland, in Germay and in international contexts. As Foreign Minister, Genscher visited Finland for the last time in March 1992 when he attended the Conference on Security and Co-operation in Europe.

Inquiries: Anssi Leino, Counsellor, Unit for Central, Western and Southern Europe, tel. +358 40 158 5517.