First, we need good, stable relations with Russia. Second, we must make every effort to save energy and focus on using various sources to meet our energy needs. We must not allow ourselves to become dependent.

The European Union and the United States of America are the big important economic areas for us, which is why I always have come up strongly in favor of concluding a trade agreement with the United States of America.

History has often showed us the strength of the forces that are unleashed by the yearning for freedom. It moved people to overcome their fears and openly confront dictators such as in East Germany and Eastern Europe about 22 years ago... The yearning for freedom cannot be contained by walls for long. It was this yearning that brought down the Iron Curtain that divided Germany and Europe, and indeed the world, into two blocs.

If it's in the German interest to have good trans-Atlantic relations, well, the task is also to look ahead, but our personal - that we have freedom of movement in the whole of Germany so if we want to see each other, well, I'm game.

From a German point of view, German-American and European-American relations are a pillar of our foreign policy.

I feel sorry sometimes for these sportsmen and women who put in just as much effort as the footballers. For example, athletes train at least as hard as footballers but have to be happy if they can earn enough to finance a decent education.

An institution like Guantanamo in its present form cannot and must not exist in the long term. We must find different ways of dealing with prisoners. As far as I'm concerned there's no question about that.