Thirty-five years after the fall of the Berlin Wall: what’s new in the East?

As we celebrate the 35th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall on November 9, 2024, let’s start from the premise that the Berlin Wall did not “fall” on the night of November 9, 1989.

The process that led to its “opening” was based on the mobilization of GDR citizens aspiring to democracy, and intensified in the autumn of 1989, culminating on November 9 and paving the way for German unification on October 3, 1990. Thirty-five years after the fall of the Berlin Wall, is it still time to celebrate in East Germany?
- Even if there are tangible signs that economic catch-up has largely been achieved, the division between East and West Germany remains strong in many economic and social areas.
- The sense of political, economic and cultural domination by West Germans is catalyzing frustration in the eastern Länder.
- Recent historic highs for populist parties, notably the far-right Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) in Thuringia, Saxony and Brandenburg, appear to be driving eastern Germany further away from the German democratic model.
- Successful cooperation initiatives between France and East Germany could help redefine a Franco-German relationship that is still very much rooted in the West.
Paul Maurice is Secretary General of The Study Committee on Franco-German Relations (Cerfa) at Ifri, where he focuses on German domestic policy, Franco-German relations within the European Union, and German foreign and security policy.
This publication is available in French (pdf): "Trente-cinq ans après la chute du mur de Berlin : à l’Est quoi de nouveau ?"
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Thirty-five years after the fall of the Berlin Wall: what’s new in the East?
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