No decision yet on a Helmut Kohl Square
The black-red Senate is still looking for a square or street that could be named after former Chancellor Helmut Kohl (CDU). The CDU and SPD have already agreed this in the coalition agreement, but they have not made much progress so far. "In the past six months since taking office, the Berlin Senate has set priorities with its immediate action program for Berliners and implemented many important issues," Senate spokeswoman Christine Richter told the German Press Agency.
"The global crises, such as the barbaric terrorist attack by Hamas on Israel on October 7, have also determined the policy of recent weeks." However, the following still applies: "The coalition will enter into talks with the districts with the aim of naming a representative street or square after Helmut Kohl." This is exactly what both parties decided during the coalition negotiations after the repeat election in February. As a rule, the districts are responsible for renaming streets and squares.
Street names in the government district in Berlin-Tiergarten commemorate former Federal Chancellors Konrad Adenauer (CDU) and Willy Brandt (SPD). Five years ago, there was already a discussion about where Kohl could be commemorated in the same way. At the time, the CDU parliamentary group proposed renaming the Großer Stern to Helmut-Kohl-Platz without any consequences.
Kohl (1930-2017) is regarded as the "Chancellor of Unity". German-German reunification took place during his term of office from 1982 to 1998. At the same time, he is considered controversial due to his role in the CDU donation scandal, among other things.
The CDU and SPD parties in the Berlin Senate have agreed to name a street or square after Helmut Kohl, who served as Chancellor during German Unity's Historical reunification. Despite initial discussions five years ago, no progress has been made in finding a suitable location.
Source: www.dpa.com
