SPEAKER: HANS DIETRICH GENSCHER

Former Federal Minister of Foreign Affairs, Germany

One of Germany and Europe's foremost politicians, Hans-Dietrich Genscher was the world's longest serving Minister of Foreign Affairs in the western world this century.

He is recognised as one of a small number of statesmen who played a major role in shaping the new Europe and his country's role in the expanding Community. While serving as Foreign Minister he was concurrently Deputy Chancellor of Germany for 18 years, until his resignation in 1992.

Hans-Dietrich Genscher is widely respected for his integrity and vision, as a man "of the centre" in politics. He was an acting Member of Parliament until the last elections in 1998. He continues to preside over several important institutions, a role he combines with writing for a number of major national and international publications as well as lecturing. He is Honorary Professor at The Freie Universität Berlin as well as at Peking University. He is Honorary Senator of the Deutsche Akademie der Naturforscher Leopoldina at Halle (Saale).

Among the many honours and awards he has received, are: the Grand Federal Cross with Star and Sash, the Order of Isabella the Catholic of Spain, the Knight Grand Cross of the most distinguished Order of St Michael and St George (OMG), the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic, and Grand Cross of the Legion of Honour of France.

He has been made an honorary citizen of the State of Costa Rica, and has been awarded honorary doctorates at the Universities of Budapest, Durham, Essex (Colchester), Georgetown, (Washington), Maryland, Moscow, Salamanca, Seoul, Tufts University(Medford/Mass.), Tartu (Estonia), Tiflis and others.

His memoirs were published in 1995 and in 1997 published in the US under the title "Rebuilding A House Divided. A memoir by The Architect of German Reunification".

His topics include:
    The importance of economic and political integration in Europe
    Trends and Prospects for the European Union
    The Euro - what comes next?
    The Challenges of Globalisation
    Europe at the Threshold of the 21st Century