Helmut Schmidt, the former West German chancellor who steered his country through the world economic crisis and cold war tension of the 1970s and early 1980s has died at the age of 96.
Of the six chancellors who led West Germany between the end of the second world war and its 1990 reunification with the east, none wore the mantle of statesmanship at home and abroad with more poise and more trenchant professionalism than Schmidt.
Angela Merkel, the current chancellor, praised Schmidt as a man who had “rendered outstanding service to his country”. She said she often sought his advice, and had visited him in Hamburg as recently as last year.
“He was a political institution,” Ms Merkel said.
Ms Merkel singled out how Schmidt had dealt with the challenge of terrorism in 1970s Germany, supported the deployment of Pershing cruise missiles in western Europe in the 1980s, a controversial decision that put strains on his Social Democratic party (SPD), and helped to launch the European Monetary System in 1979.
She called him “one of the fathers of summit diplomacy”, noting that he and the French president Giscard d’Estaing had held one of the world’s first economic summits 40 years ago.
When he succeeded Willy Brandt in 1974 as the country’s second Social Democrat chancellor, Schmidt — a former defence and finance minister — brought a wealth of experience to his office and quickly developed authority on the world stage.
The centre-left Social Democrat led West Germany from 1974 to 1982, when he lost power to conservative Helmut Kohl. His leadership qualities, like his principles, were turned to the best advantage of his country and of Europe.
Schmidt’s straight-talking, sometimes moralistic political style was influenced by a conviction that his country had to build on the most stringent lessons from the catastrophe of the war.
His view was that the shadow of Hitler and Auschwitz obliged Germany to promote European integration and international stability.
One his best-known sayings, which summed up his gritty, pragmatic side and suspicion of ideologues was “whoever has a vision should go and visit a doctor”. Schmidt went on to become an iconic elder statesman, weighing in on Germany’s political debates into his 90s.
The Suddeutsche newspaper said in an obituary: “As a politician, Helmut Schmidt was a crisis manager and global economist. As a pensioner, he was a publicist and elder statesman. After he was voted out of the chancellery, his popularity rose from year to year.”
Frank-Walter Steinmeier, foreign minister, said: “We Germans have lost a father figure ... Helmut Schmidt was not only a chancellor of the Germans -— he was a mentor of the Germans.”
Mr Steinmeier praised Schmidt’s global vision, saying he “always saw Germany in Europe and Europe on the world stage”. He joked about Schmidt’s love of smoking, saying: “ Helmut Schmidt was a great statesman down to his last cigarette.”
Hans-Dietrich Genscher, a former German foreign minister, said: “We know that Germany has become poorer, and we feel that we will miss him again and again ... For me, Helmut Schmidt’s death marks the parting from a companion in difficult times.”
Sigmar Gabriel, head of the SPD said: “Helmut Schmidt embodied in the best sense of the word the international tradition of social democracy ... we will miss his judgment, his world view and his advice. We grieve for Helmut Schmidt and are proud that he was one of us.”
前西德總理、在上世紀70年月至80年月初率領國度挺過天下經濟危急和暗斗重要局面的赫爾穆特施密特(Helmut Schmidt)逝世，享年96歲。
在從第二次天下大戰停止至1990年兩德同一的那段時代主政西德的六名總理中，沒有第二小我做獲得像施密特那樣，以鎮靜和鋒利的專業精力在國表裏飾演政治家的腳色。
現任德國總理安格拉默克爾(Angela Merkel)誇獎施密特“為國度供給了出色的辦事”。她說，她常常收羅他的看法，就在客歲還去漢堡訪問了他。
“他是一個政治名流，”默克爾說。
默克爾提到了施密特如安在上世紀70年月應答德國面對的恐懼主義挑釁，在80年月支撐在西歐安排潘興(Pershing)彈道導彈(那是一個有爭議的決議，使他地點的社民黨(SPD)遭到壓力)，並在1979年贊助啟動歐洲泉幣系統(European Monetary System)。
默克爾形容施密特是“峰會交際的開山祖師之一”，指出他與時任法國總統的吉斯卡爾德斯坦(Giscard d’Estaing)在40年前舉辦了天下上最先的經濟峰會之一。
當他在1974年代替維利勃蘭特(Willy Brandt)，成為西德第二位社民黨總理時，曾擔負國防部長和財務部長的施密特帶來了豐碩的履歷，在天下舞台上敏捷建立了威望。
中央偏左的社民黨從1974年起主政西德至1982年，那年施密特敗在守舊的赫爾穆特科爾(Helmut Kohl)部下。施密特的首腦氣質和他的原則同樣，成為他的國度甚至全部歐洲的絕佳上風。
施密特直話直說、偶然近乎品德說教的政治作風暗地裏的信心是，他的國度必需在吸取戰斗災害所帶來的最嚴格教導的基本上鉆營成長。
他的概念是，希特勒和奧斯維辛會合營的暗影使德國有責任推進歐洲一體化和國際穩固。
他最愛說的一句話是“有想象力的人都應當去看大夫”，這句話道出了他頑強務實的一壁，和他對幻想家的疑惑。施密特厥後成為一個偶像般的元老級政治家，在90多歲時仍舊影響著德國的政治爭辯。
《南德意誌報》(Suddeutsche)的訃告稱：“作為一個政治人物，赫爾穆特施密特是一名危急治理者和環球經濟學家。作為一位退休的人，他是一個公關專家和元老級政治家。在他當選民們逐出總理府以後，他的人氣一年比一年高。”
德外洋長弗蘭克-瓦爾特施泰因邁爾(Frank-Walter Steinmeier)表現：“咱們德國人落空了一個父親般的人物……赫爾穆特施密特不但是德國人的總理，他照樣德國人的導師。”
施泰因邁爾誇獎施密特的環球視線，稱他“老是在歐洲的舞台上對待德國，在天下舞台上對待歐洲”。他奚弄了施密特的煙癮，稱：“赫爾穆特施密特直到抽末了一根煙的時刻還是一名巨大的政治家。”
德國前外長漢斯-迪特裏希根舍(Hans-Dietrich Genscher)表現：“咱們曉得德國遭遇了無可挽回的喪失，咱們認為咱們會一次又一次思念他……對我而言，赫爾穆特施密特的去世標記著在艱苦的時刻離別一名錯誤。”
社民黨主席西格馬爾加布裏爾(Sigmar Gabriel)表現：“赫爾穆特施密特表現了國際社會民主傳統的精髓……咱們會惦念他的斷定力，他的天下觀和他的卓識。咱們悼念赫爾穆特施密特，並對他曾是我黨的一員覺得驕傲。”
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