President Joachim Gauck: Germany "will not try to be dominant"
February 22, 2014
"It's not a good thing when weapons are used. But sometimes, it's even worse when the forces of good keep their weapons locked up, and let the forces of evil use their weapons," he said in the interview on Friday, February 21.
President Gauck continued, "Our basic position, when we are considering deploying troops in a particularly serious case, is to always join with others - and as a general rule, with a mandate. And when we do that, we must ask ourselves, 'What is our purpose?' We must always show solidarity, but Germany will not try to be dominant."
Dagmar Engel, the head of Deutsche Welle's studio in Germany's Federal Press Conference building, posed her questions to President Joachim Gauck in an interview titled "More Responsibility? Germany's Role in International Affairs."
With regard to the current situation in Ukraine, Gauck proposed an approach centered on dialogue, saying, "Perhaps round-table talks would have a calming effect during a period of transition. These talks would also give all sides a chance to take a deep breath, review their positions, and develop alternative solutions that had previously been blocked."
The president also commented on Deutsche Welle: "If we believe that our experience in political affairs, human rights and social and cultural issues could benefit others - just as we now benefit from the experience of scientists, artists and politicians from other parts of the world - I think we should share what we have. I'm quite proud of Deutsche Welle. It has modern and sophisticated programs that serve as a sort of calling card around the world."
The complete interview with President Joachim Gauck can be seen in Deutsche Welle's German, English, Spanish and Arabic TV programming. For a complete list of times, see below. The interview is also available online at www.dw.de.
English version
On DW:
SAT, 22.02.2014: 15:30 UTC
SAT, 22.02.2014: 18:03 UTC
SUN, 23.02.2014: 05:30 UTC
SUN, 23.02.2014: 12:30 UTC
On DW (Europe):
SAT, 22.02.2014: 18:03 UTC
SUN, 23.02.2014: 12:30 UTC
German version
On DW (Amerika):
SAT, 22.02.2014: 02:30 UTC
SAT, 22.02.2014: 15:30 UTC
SAT, 22.02.2014: 22:03 UTC
SUN, 23.02.2014: 00:30 UTC
On DW (Asien):
SAT, 22.02.2014: 03:30 UTC
SAT, 22.02.2014: 06:03 UTC
SAT, 22.02.2014: 16:03 UTC
SAT, 22.02.2014: 23:03 UTC
On DW (Europe):
SAT, 22.02.2014: 09:30 UTC
SAT, 22.02.2014: 21:30 UTC
Arabic version
On DW (Arabia):
SAT, 22.02.2014: 17:30 UTC
SUN, 23.02.2014: 08:15 UTC
Spanish version
On DW (Latinoamérica):
SAT, 22-02-2014: 15:30 UTC
THU, 23-02-2014: 00:30 UTC