“Today we can say: The responsibility of Germany for the European agreement, for the transatlantic partner­ship, for the existence of Israel - they all belong to the core of our country's reasons of state and to the reasons of our party."

      Extract of a speech of the German CDU chairman, Angela Merkel, on the occasion of the commemorative event "60 years CDU“ on 16 June 2005 in Berlin.   (Translation Current Concerns)