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Barack Obama tells Berlin audience: 'We can't hide behind a wall'
Source: The Guardian
Barack Obama tells Berlin audience: ‘We can’t hide behind a wall’
Former US president and Angela Merkel discuss democracy amid
tight security in front of Brandenburg Gate
Kate Connolly in Berlin
Thursday 25 May 2017 11.07 BST
The former US president, Barack Obama, has made a plea for international engagement as he told an audience of tens of thousands in Berlin that “we can’t hide behind a wall.”
Obama was discussing democracy and global responsibility with the German chancellor, Angela Merkel, as the country marks the 500th anniversary of the Reformation. It was Obama’s first speaking event in Europe since leaving the White House in January.
At the 18th-century arch in Berlin that has also heard celebrated speeches from Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton, Obama and Merkel took questions about shaping democracy from a teacher, an actor, a social worker and a student.
In questions to both leaders on the refugee crisis, Obama said nation states had a duty to help people in need but also to make clear to their own populations the interconnected nature of the world.
“One way we can do a better job is to create more opportunities for people in their home countries,” he said. “When we provide development aid to Africa or we are involved in conflict resolution in areas where war has been taking place, we make investments to try to deal with climate change … Those things we do not do just for charity, not just because they are the right thing to do.
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Former US president and Angela Merkel discuss democracy amid
tight security in front of Brandenburg Gate
Kate Connolly in Berlin
Thursday 25 May 2017 11.07 BST
The former US president, Barack Obama, has made a plea for international engagement as he told an audience of tens of thousands in Berlin that “we can’t hide behind a wall.”
Obama was discussing democracy and global responsibility with the German chancellor, Angela Merkel, as the country marks the 500th anniversary of the Reformation. It was Obama’s first speaking event in Europe since leaving the White House in January.
At the 18th-century arch in Berlin that has also heard celebrated speeches from Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton, Obama and Merkel took questions about shaping democracy from a teacher, an actor, a social worker and a student.
In questions to both leaders on the refugee crisis, Obama said nation states had a duty to help people in need but also to make clear to their own populations the interconnected nature of the world.
“One way we can do a better job is to create more opportunities for people in their home countries,” he said. “When we provide development aid to Africa or we are involved in conflict resolution in areas where war has been taking place, we make investments to try to deal with climate change … Those things we do not do just for charity, not just because they are the right thing to do.
[font size=1]-snip-[/font]
Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/may/25/barack-obama-draws-crowd-of-tens-of-thousands-in-berlin
