Treaties exist so that they will be adhered to. It only serves to strengthen euroskepticism when we constantly make promises and reach agreements that we do not adhere to.

It's understandable that Europe's Muslims are in a difficult situation, which is partly their own doing and partly not.

I think we will have to spend more on defense, for infrastructure, for extension of the broadband network and also for domestic security.

I don't want to interpret the pope's words, especially as I am one of those horrible people who fell away from the Roman church after Martin Luther.

Those who constantly qualify everything and have no opinions of their own are ultimately just as incapable of tolerance.

Our balanced budget has an important psychological function. It is a signal that we can't continue to constantly take on debt.

I would caution against fueling cheap populism. First of all, every German who has spent a vacation in Greece knows that the standard of living there isn't higher than it is in Germany. Second, Greece is paying a high price for European assistance.