Status: 02.10.2021 1:25 p.m.
The Romanian President Klaus Iohannis was supposed to receive the Charlemagne Prize in Aachen as early as 2020, but the award could not take place due to the pandemic. Today he received the award.
According to the jury, Klaus Iohannis made his country, which was able to overcome a “brutal dictatorship”, “the most European in Southeast Europe”. He is an outstanding champion for European values, for freedom, democracy and the rule of law and a great builder of bridges between East and West, according to the reasons given by the Charlemagne Prize Board.
In 1959 Klaus Iohannis was born in Hermannstadt, in Romanian Sibiu. He belongs to the ethnic group of the Transylvanian Saxons.
Romanian President Iohannis receives the International Charlemagne Prize
Tagesschau 12:50 p.m., October 2nd, 2021
Iohannis becomes President of Romania in 2014
In 2000 he becomes mayor of Sibiu. During his tenure, he brought many foreign investors and large EU projects to his home country and achieved that Sibiu became the European Capital of Culture in 2007.
In 2014 he stood as a candidate for the National Liberal Party PNL and was elected President of Romania. He gains respect for his clear stance against corruption and his pro-European course, which, unlike some neighboring countries, he maintains even in stormy times.
Celebration under corona conditions
The award ceremony in the coronation hall of the Aachen town hall was smaller than usual due to the corona regulations. Only 350 guests were admitted. The guests of honor included the President of the European Council, Charles Michel, who, in his celebratory speech, paid tribute to Iohannis in some personal words for his methodical and principled attitude.
Former award winners also took part in the ceremony in the coronation hall of Aachen City Hall. Among them Martin Schulz, Wolfgang Schäuble, the former Lithuanian President Dalia Grybauskaite and the first full-time President of the European Council, Herman van Rompuy. North Rhine-Westphalia’s Prime Minister who made Aachen original CDU chairman Armin Laschet, had canceled his participation.
Prize winners and guests of honor appear on the balcony of the town hall
The folk festival and the usual reception on the occasion of the Charlemagne Prize with many citizens of the city cannot take place this year due to the corona.
The international Charlemagne Prize was awarded for the first time in 1950. The prize is awarded to personalities or institutions who have made a contribution to Europe and European unification. It is named after Emperor Charlemagne, who is considered to be the unity of Europe.
Source: wdr.de
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