Top 269 Quotes & Sayings by Angela Merkel - Page 3

We have to ensure politically that what's doable can indeed by translated into law, but what's not doable mustn't become European law. Otherwise, the auto industry will work somewhere with higher carbon emissions - and we can't want that.

At German unification, we were lucky to get so much help from West Germany. Now, we have the good fortune of being able to help each other in Europe.

The West was a wonderful world to me. I decided then that if this is the way they did things, then I wanted to be part of it.

We need a really credible perspective toward long-term de-carbonization.

Very early, it became clear to me that East Germany could not function.

Greece wishes to be part of the eurozone, but it must, of course, go through with the necessary reforms to make this happen.

Sometimes I can't stop myself from buying things just because I see them - even when I don't really need them.

The 'community method' can only be applied in those areas in which the European Union actually has competence. Where the community has no competence, the 'community method' clearly cannot be applied.

The G7 - and earlier, the G8 - were a group of countries that shared the same values with regard to freedom and democracy, and through the annexation of Crimea, Russia made it clear at a certain point that these values of keeping the peace, integrity of the borders of a country were not being respected.

The only thing the East German system taught us was that we should never do it that way again.

We've always had this experience that things take long, but I'm 100% convinced that our principles will in the end prevail. No one knew how the Cold War would end at the time, but it did end. This is within our living experience... I'm surprised at how fainthearted we sometimes are and how quickly we lose courage.

We needed 40 years to overcome East Germany. Sometimes in history, one has to be prepared for the long haul and not ask after four months if it still makes sense to keep up our demands.

Having led many negotiations with countries outside the E.U. in the past, we would never enter the same compromises and reach the same good outcomes with states that don't shoulder the responsibilities and costs of the common market.

It is always the case that when something emerges - which, of course, from the perspective of the former West Germany looks very different - then people say, 'She hasn't told us this yet' and 'She hasn't told us that yet.' I don't know - maybe there are other things I didn't talk about because no one ever asked me.

I think it has been a tremendous feat on the part of East Germans since 1990 to adapt to everything changing.

I come from a country in which I experienced economic collapse.

To grow up in the neighborhood of handicapped people was an important experience for me. I learned back then to treat them in a very normal way.

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.

I don't believe you are simply born with the ambition of becoming chancellor. But if you want to make a difference, if you enjoy putting ideas into practice, then the post of chancellor has to be the one presenting the biggest opportunity of all.

Freedom is the very essence of our economy and society. Without freedom the human mind is prevented from unleashing its creative force. But what is also clear is that this freedom does not stand alone. It is freedom in responsibility and freedom to exercise responsibility.

Global climate change is one of the greatest challenges facing humanity in the twenty-first century.

Neither the chains of dictatorship nor the fetters of oppression can keep down the forces of freedom for long.

Freedom does not mean being free of something, but to be free to do something.

Trying to keep a society together, trying to keep the older and the younger people together, trying to keep those who live in rural areas together with those who live in cities is one of the most important and most noble tasks of politicians these days.

Ladies, it is not your education, status or personality that has brought you here but the elegance of God which was still and still working upon you.

As the head of the government, it is my responsibility to make the overriding political goals and relationships more clear. Part of the reason the public didn't understand some of the reforms enacted during the past legislative period was that there was far too much talk about the details, while the general picture often remained invisible.

I am thankful for all the hard times I've been through and all the tears I've cried because that has put me as closer to God and made me the strong woman I am today!

There is anything but an assurance of success, I have to be very clear about that.

...climate change is accelerating. It threatens our well being, our security, and our economic development. It will lead to uncontrollable risks and dramatic damage if we do not take resolute countermeasures.

As a woman with strong opinions talking about technology and politics is not always welcome in Germany. Nope, it's more like having a great cheerleader team behind me. People who follow my journey know I have a slightly colorful personality. The rest skipped out long ago.

The digital world creates situation where there are no secrets anymore.

I am thankful for the way I was raised, to be positive. Even when times have gotten rough I have always tried to look on the bright side. Even when I was put down, yelled at and made feel insignificant, I still thought things were alright. I did realize when enough is enough.

We Europeans must really take our destiny into our own hands, of course in friendship with the United States, in friendship with Great Britain, with other neighbors wherever possible, also with Russia. But we must know that we need to fight for our future ourselves, as Europeans, for our destiny.

Don't get bitter and twisted and nasty by life. You may have been wronged or cheated on; two wrongs never make a right. Instead learn your mistakes and learn your lessons. Remain strong with your head held high.

I never underestimated myself. And I never saw anything wrong with ambition.

A good compromise is one where everybody makes a contribution.

I might bend, but I will NEVER break because it's in my nature as a strong woman.

I am courageous at the decisive moment. But I need a good deal of start-up time, and I try to take as much as possible into consideration beforehand.

We must never forget our responsibilities as politicians to our country and its citizens. We must always remain humble before our people.

If you want to be constructive in politics, the less you look back, the better. If you do look back, then it can only be to learn for yourself through the events that have taken place.

It's not five minutes to midnight. It's five minutes after midnight.

Don't get bogged down by life and other people's problems or hang ups.

The full veil is not appropriate for Germans, and should be banned wherever legally possible.

One can remain more sure-footed by taking small steps, but perhaps achieve greater speed by taking bigger steps. Of course, one also runs the risk of setting out in a completely erroneous direction. Surely the important thing isn't the length of our steps, but that the objective is clear.

Democracy must be our answer to terrorism

I still believe in the old fashioned ways of showing a woman Respect and Honor!!

Osama Bin Laden was responsible for the deaths of thousands of innocent people. Terror was brought to many countries on his direct orders and in his name, against men, women and children, Christians and Muslims. Osama Bin Laden claimed to be acting in the name of Islam, but in reality he made a mockery of the basic values of his and all other religions.

We think of cannabis as a drug, in accordance with international opinions. This means that even consuming small amounts can lead to very severe dependence. With alcohol or cigarettes however, sensibly limited consumption does not bear the risk of immediate addictiveness as this is the case with cannabis according to our opinion. With alcohol there surely is an element of a tradition. However, enjoyed in moderation, as supplement to a meal for example, alcohol is not something that causes immediate dependence. Still, there is a great need for prevention and information in this matter.

To exclude groups of people because of their faith, this isn't worthy of the free state in which we live. It isn't compatible with our essential values. And its humanly reprehensible, xenophobia, racism, extremism have no place here. We are fighting to ensure that they don't have a place elsewhere either.

Look forward to the future and look forward to the unknown. Nothing stays the same and people change. One day that hurt and pain will be a distant memory.

Where there’s a will, there’s a way.

I believe that we will move forward a little tomorrow but I have my doubts that we will achieve a result.

If a market exists for low-paid work, then we should think about how we can make this type of work more attractive by providing government assistance. Of course, the wage-earner must be able to live off of his wages. We will not allow poverty wages or dumping wages. But the wage earner can receive a combined wage that includes both his actual wages and a government subsidy.

No bank should be allowed to become so big that it can blackmail governments.

Belong purportedly to certain groups say, "We are the people and not the others." That is something that we cannot allow to happen. That is something that I think at the time in the GDR - at the time when we had this in the GDR, where the people stood in the street and said, "We are the people," that is something that filled me with great joy.

Budget consolidation and economic growth are two sides of the same coin.

We have freedom to demonstrate in Germany, but there is no place for incitement and insulting people who come to us from other countries.

Always be more than you appear and never appear to be more than you are.

We will take care of every single person in our society. That is our task.

I am not here for women only, but also for women.