Germany celebrates 20th anniversary of its reunification treaty

Germany marks reunification treaty’s anniversary

BERLIN — German leaders are marking the 20th anniversary of the treaty that sealed the reunification of West Germany with the former communist East Germany.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere on Tuesday unveiled a memorial plaque in Berlin remembering the treaty signing ceremony 20 years ago.

Culture minister Bernd Neumann says the plaque recalls the courage of East Germans who stood up against injustice under the communists, saying the communist state’s “inhuman perfidy cannot be forgotten”.

The treaty was signed after two months of negotiations on August 31, 1990 — more than half a year after the Berlin Wall came down — and the reunification went into effect on October 3.