State ceremony for Horst Köhler: Germany mourns its president

State ceremony for Horst Köhler: Germany mourns its president

On February 18, 2025, the memory of the late former German Federal President Horst Köhler will be honored with a state ceremony in the Berlin Cathedral. As on the website of kathpress.at reports, in addition to the current President Frank-Walter Steinmeier and the former Finance Minister Theo Waigel, Austria's former Federal President Heinz Fischer has also been invited to speak. The ceremony will begin with a funeral service in which high-ranking representatives of the churches will take part, including the former council chairman of the Evangelical Church in Germany, Wolfgang Huber, and the Greek Orthodox Bishop Emmanuel of Christoupolis.

Horst Köhler, who died on February 1, 2025 at the age of 81, was the ninth Federal President of Germany from 2004 to 2010 and the first to resign from office. Before his presidency, he held important positions including the directorate of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. He was born in 1943 into a Bessarabian German family in Poland and later emigrated to Germany, which shaped him throughout his life, as shown in his biography Wikipedia can be read. Köhler played a crucial role in German financial policy and was heavily involved in negotiations for German reunification.

His resignation from office in 2010 followed controversial statements regarding the Bundeswehr, for which he received strong criticism. Despite his controversy, Köhler remained a popular figure in German politics, committed to the issues of Africa and sustainable development. After his resignation, he remained active, particularly in international committees, and continued to advocate for social and environmental justice.