speeches

U.S. Consulate General Frankfurt
September 11, 2006


Dear Lord Mayor Roth,
Ladies and gentlemen, members of the press,
Colleagues, friends,

Today in America and around the world we are observing the fifth anniversary of the September 11th, 2001 terrorist attacks. I doubt that any of us will ever forget where we were or what we were doing when we first learned of those awful attacks.

I had arrived in the office only a few minutes before hearing a news report that an airplane had crashed into one of the Twin Towers in New York City. Just moments later, news of the second attack flashed across our television screens, and we knew instantly that something truly terrible had happened. Then the third airplane hit the Pentagon. As the smoke rose from the burning building right across the Potomac River from the State Department, we were instructed to evacuate our offices. Rumors flew that the State Department, the White House, and the Capitol Building were in imminent danger of attack. The State Department’s senior leaders moved to a more secure location away from Washington DC. The National Guard patrolled the streets of Washington, and the skies were silent except for the sound of military jets patrolling our airspace.

In the aftermath of that terrible day, the people of Frankfurt displayed in countless ways – through prayers and gestures, words and initiatives – heartfelt support for the victims of the terrorist attacks. Thousands of people came to the old Consulate on Siesmayerstraße or to the Amerika Haus in Frankfurt to offer their condolences and support for the American people, to light candles in remembrance, or to leave behind a bouquet of flowers.

In a touching gesture on the 1st Anniversary of the attacks, you, Lord Mayor Roth, presided over the installation of a memorial plaque outside the steps of the Amerika Haus in the center of the city.

That plaque expresses the solidarity of the citizens of Frankfurt with the citizens of the U.S. and the victims of the attacks, and we have seen over the past five years that German expressions of friendship and solidarity have not been merely empty phrases, but have been accompanied by real deeds.

I was touched by the story of volunteer fireman Christof Schwarzer from neighboring Bad Homburg, who collected a relatively large amount of money and flew to New York to deliver it in person to New York firefighters. Equally moving was the work of Commerzbank, which contributed over a half-million Euros to bring the relatives of the victims of 9/11 to Germany, showing them that the people of Germany really do care.

This ceremony today in Frankfurt, one of Europe’s most cosmopolitan cities, reminds us that we're engaged in a global war against an enemy that threatens all civilized nations. And while we have moved from Siesmayerstraße and the Amerika Haus, we wanted to be sure that the memorial plaque you installed 4 years ago continues to demonstrate the strong bonds that exist between Americans and Germans right here, in a place where visitors to this consulate can see it.

I think the new location for this plaque also speaks volumes about how solid the German-American relationship is. It is precisely in Frankfurt that the U.S. Government has established the largest U.S. Consulate in the world, indeed the largest consulate of any country in the world. That demonstrates far more than words can how important we consider this relationship to be.

As we look back on September 11, 2001, we also look forward. My colleagues and I look forward to working with our German friends and partners to leave a safer and more hopeful world for our children and grandchildren.

Thank you.

As prepared for delivery.