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Rozanne L. Ridgway, the U.S. Ambassador to the German Democratic Republic (East Germany), discusses U.S. relations with East Germany and other eastern bloc nations. Ridgway also answers listener questions.

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(00:00:00) It was about seven weeks ago that I along with seven other editors from around this country had lunch with my guests at her residence in East Berlin and just before we sat down to eat my guest today casually informed us that we could assume that everything. We said was being monitored by the East Germans. Well that didn't prevent us from having an interesting exchange of views that day in East Berlin and exchange. I hope we can repeat here this afternoon. My guest is Rosanna Ridgeway US ambassador to East Germany Ambassador Ridgeway is a native of st. Paul. She's a graduate of Hamline University and she is a career Foreign Service Officer. It's very distinct pleasure to have you here this afternoon. It's a very real pleasure for me to be here and to be back home. Well, welcome back home. There are a number of things that I'd like to talk to you about here in the next hour and we're also going to of course invite listeners to join us in just a couple of minutes and I'll give out the numbers in a minute, but first of all, one of the things that struck me during my visit to Berlin about Ago was the fact that in East Berlin it seemed as though and maybe it's just the nature of being surrounded by a very different system of economics and government at all. But that you and your staff there at the embassy are rather like an island and I'm wondering if you could talk a little bit about whether or not you feel that way at times and just exactly what your mission is in East Germany and East Berlin. In fact, the island is the city of Berlin itself located some 110 miles inside of the German Democratic Republic or East Germany as most people call it and those of us who represent the United States in the German Democratic Republic are not in the island. It's our colleagues in West Berlin who in fact are residents of an island, but the city is unique as you suggest it's a an element a representative of The fact that the peace treaties have never been signed for World War II in Europe and that in the middle of Europe we have what we now call the East-West question the United States and its allies the Soviet Union and its allies ranged across the the middle of Europe with questions still unresolved between them those of us who serve on the Eastern side of that line do feel ourselves to be in another world. We are not as far east as our colleagues in Prague or in the Soviet Union, but we are nevertheless living in the East living in the center of what is called socialist society. In fact communist society and witness on an everyday basis to what is meant by the realization of communist objectives while we were there while the other editors and I were in Germany, of course the debate over whether or not the missiles would be It was going on Full Steam. And of course that's the actual deployment has begun and the debate has probably quieted down some what has happened. If anything in the way that you and your East German colleagues relate to each other now that that decision has been made in the NATO forces are receiving the Pershing twos in the cruise missiles as anything really changed you think there has been a pause in the dialogue to the extent that we have a dialogue at all with our colleagues and counterparts in the German Democratic Republic a very interesting thing happened in Berlin shortly. After you left the deployment began the people in that part of the world waited to see what the Soviet response would be. The promised response was an end to talks or at least their postponement. All of those things happened. I think there was a great deal of nervousness a great deal of concern about next. UPS could this very difficult situation be managed and yet all of a sudden from one day to the next the Christmas ornaments went up in East Berlin and the streets were lighted the Christmas trees were put out all of the symbols of Christmas were in place and it was very clear that at least for the last month's of 1983 the citizens of the German Democratic Republic. We're going to celebrate Christmas. Okay. Well, let's give out some phone numbers here and invite some listeners to join us with questions. If you'd like to ask a question of our ambassador to East Germany Roseanne Ridgeway call us if you're in the Twin Cities at 2276 thousand that's 2276 thousand if you're listening to us around the state of Minnesota, but outside the metro area call us toll-free at 1-866-553-2368. That's one eight hundred six, five two nine seven zero zero in the number again in the Twin Cities Metropolitan. Area is 2276 thousand while we're waiting for our first call. I want to mention something that I sensed and see whether or not you feel the same way. When we were in Berlin as a group. We spoke with a number of City officials in West Berlin and they told us about the behind-the-scenes cooperation that goes on if not on a daily basis at least on a weekly or monthly basis between the two between the city officials from the two parts of the city most Berliner seem to like to refer to Berlin as Berlin and not East Berlin West Berlin, and I guess I came away from some of those discussions feeling a little bit. Like there was some glimmer of hope there that despite the headlines that the two cities seem to still share things like a canal system and at least part of their public transportation system and other things too that I don't know about perhaps do you see a lot of that sort of behind the scenes quiet cooperation between the the officials in the two parts of the city Yes, but it's it's on the day-to-day issue of City management. If you will in a few years the city of Berlin is going to be celebrating at seven hundred and fiftieth anniversary. It's another area in which there will be if not cooperation at least coordination, but one shouldn't assign a larger importance to that kind of cooperation. It simply makes good mechanical sense for the two parts of the city to worry about whether Railways mesh and streetcar lines are interchangeable and Garbage Disposal Systems mutually respective respectful of the interests of the other half of the city, but one cannot take that to be on that day-to-day practical question area and move it into the large political question. Let's take our first call. Good afternoon. We're listening for your question. (00:06:57) Yeah. Good afternoon. I'm wondering if I could ask. The Ambassador sort of a two-part question in her dealings and in the dealings of her colleagues with their East German counterparts those within the East German Communist Party do they find any type of a longing for reunification with West Germany and by the same token do they find a time to resentment towards Soviet Russia perhaps because their Eastern counterparts realized that Russia is the major reason why they are not reunified at this time. I'll hang up and I'll listen for her answer and I appreciate the program in her. Thank you. (00:07:31) So the very important question in considering East Germany because we I've been asked to talk about counterparts in the party system and one must make the distinction in talking about East Germany those members of the Communist Party who are in the leadership today in East Germany, do not long in any way for reunification. They described the German Democratic Republic. To is a as the first German socialist State consistent with a long tradition of German socialism German Marxism. The only basis on which reunification would be of interest would be as a reunified Marxist state that same group of party leaders and aging leadership, but nonetheless a vigorous and and quite flexible leadership returned to what is now East Germany at the end of World War II with the forces of the Soviet Union. They had fled Nazi Germany in the mid-1930s. They were themselves audiological victims of Nazi Germany. They found refuge in the Soviet Union. They returned they were put in place by a Soviet government, which they see today as an ideological brother. And so There is not in that very narrow group of people. That is the Communists officialdom. There is neither the longing for a democratic Germany democracy as we Define it nor a sense of resentment toward the Soviet Union. There is a great deal of appreciation and a sense of fraternal Ties That Bind but I got the sense when I was there that that may not be the case with some of the citizens least of Berlin of East and West Berlin our tour guide for example seemed to suggest that people do like to just simply refer to themselves as berliners and that while they don't expect is going to happen next year that nobody likes to her point of view. At least was that nobody likes to sit back and simply say it's always going to be this way that some place back there in the backs of many people's minds is the hope that the two countries will someday be unified and be the way it was before the war. Yeah. So now I'm sure you know from your Visit that in East Germany today some 80% of East Germany can receive and does receive West German and West Berlin television and radio and there is a great sense then of community to through the through the media alone. Let's take another call. Good afternoon the ambassadors listening for your (00:10:20) question. Thank you Miss Ridgeway. I wondered what advice you would give to a young really promising High School senior who has his heart set on The Diplomatic service and particularly with the percentage of opportunity for the trained diplomatic service person versus the political spoil system. Of what what opportunity is there for the those coming up? (00:10:55) The first piece of advice I would give would be not to be frightened by the the challenge or the sense that only a few people can become career diplomats. But to to go on ahead with the study of history economics international relations General philosophy a good General liberal arts background. If one doesn't get into the Diplomatic service, there are other career fields that require the same kind of education and to test oneself against this rather elaborate system for entry into the career diplomatic service of the United States. It is true that at the top of the service represented by the position of Ambassador. There is an increasingly large number of appointments draw not from the career service, but from outside, I'm not as troubled by that perhaps as some of my colleagues. I think it would be very dangerous for the United States to be represented. Overseas by an exclusively career oriented service by people who had spent the perhaps the last 25 or 30 years just talking to each other just agreeing among themselves and having an Institutional personality which could not help but be somewhat different from that of the country. They were supposed to be representing. We need new recruits. We need them in the middle of the service and we need them at the top of the service also the questions of diplomacy today while those that take the headlines or questions of War and Peace to be sure there are on page two issues that go to our daily living issues of Aviation rights of trade between countries of cultural exchange and I think it is wrong to assume that only career diplomats have the background to deal with those issues are in fact with you. Who's on page one many distinguished Americans have been willing to give up their careers in the private sector and come into public life to share their background and it has not been an entirely unhappy experience again. I think I have to always find every opportunity in this is one to remind my career diplomatic colleagues who very often disagree with me on this question that we do not have a perfect record of performance either among those of our career colleagues who have who have been assigned. I think we need to concern ourselves as you implied in your question with the finding of a balance between those who come from outside and those who come up the ladder from the inside but a young person looking for a career shouldn't be discouraged by the proportions there is opportunity there and it's one that I hope anyone who's interested in in the field would would follow with as much Vigor and energy as possible. Let's take another call. Good afternoon. We're For your (00:13:55) question. Yes, I would like to ask the ambassador of what positive aspects she seen of light and of the government in the German Democratic Republic. (00:14:09) I think that one has to be amazed at the ability of people everywhere to make do with the situation easy or difficult people learn to to see what is possible. And what is not possible on a day-to-day basis. I believe those people now living in the German Democratic Republic who have been there for 40 years do not expect change hasn't happened so far. They don't plan on it perhaps for the years ahead and they have turned to music to to their families to all of the things that we that we turn to their jobs their families their children their education and they go on and perhaps the most positive aspect on a daily basis is watching people go on with life and And commit themselves to to future if not for themselves and for their children. It is a much poorer country the Dem German Democratic Republic is than than West Germany, is it not? Yes. It is among the countries of the Warsaw Pact. It is the leading economy. It's the old agricultural sector of Germany, which has become in its own right a major International Industrial power ranked 11th in the world today among industrialized nations, but despite its prominence in the Warsaw Pact countries. It is for example an economy of only half the wealth of the West German economy 16 minutes past 12:00. Noon. And our guest this afternoon is Ambassador Roseanne Ridgeway, who is our ambassador to East Germany. We're going to take another call now good afternoon. You're on the air. (00:15:58) Good afternoon. Thanks for presenting this think it's interesting subject. My concern is that the quickest way to stop a realistic foreign policy debate in this country is to bring in communism. And that's what's often done. When that discussion really isn't desired about the merits of whatever actions were taking and my question. That's why my viewpoint my question is this when is it? You said earlier that East Germany was did not desire reunification with West Germany. Do you consider it your view that East Germany is poised to attack West Germany or more generally that the Warsaw Pact countries are on the edge of invading the NATO alliance. (00:16:41) I'm going to quickly say no to the question as it ended up, but I'd like to go back and say that in answer to the first callers request that I discussed the objectives of East Germans. It was very carefully stated East German counterparts in the party and it was on that basis that I was discussing the national objectives of of east of East Germany. I think that and I'm going to accept The point of view that's implicit in your question. I think that on a day-to-day basis people in East Germany as people everywhere want simply to go to work and simply to come home in the evening to family and to whatever personal interests they have and they want a world in which they do not live under the constant threat of war the relationship between East Germany and West Germany is a very complicated one but since 1969, it has been characterized by desire on the part of both states to construct a positive relationship to set aside for the moment the very emotional question of reunification what form of society when what kind of a constitution and instead on a day-to-day basis work out those kinds of programs and relationships, which permit the greatest number of people in both countries to go back and forth. To remain in contact with relatives and to address questions of mutual interest earlier. We were talking about the relations between East Berlin and West Berlin. In fact the cooperation between West Germany and East Germany has even greater in such areas as River pollution air pollution cultural exchange the movement of people the postal systems and things of that sort. And so I think that it would that there is today in Europe. No in Eastern Europe, no overriding theme of let's have wore their overriding theme is as elsewhere in the world. Let's have peace. Let's take another call. Good afternoon. You're on the (00:18:50) air. Thank you. Yes, I'm calling from st. Cloud. Some of us are continually amazed that the possibility of nuclear war doesn't seem to get the top priority that it should have. I mean German German unification, whichever kind of Germany you want. It's If there's no Germany at all or no other no Europe or Easter West and that's have to take priority over all the other issues. It doesn't seem to us that the Reagan Administration does give it that prayer priority now in particular is it correct that I've thought I heard that some East Germans have lately manifested some nervousness about Soviet missiles being deployed in East Germany and could we not move on on things like that to get this danger of nuclear war resolved and so we can go on to the other things which have lesser priority. (00:19:47) Let's get the ambassador's thoughts on that. Just one quick thought as a matter of principle. Unfortunately, the world doesn't wait for us to handle issues one by one it presents the issues all at the same time and the current policy formulation is to address both the questions of arms control and I agree with the urgency of that. I don't think anyone would disagree with that. And the prevention of something as unacceptable as as nuclear war and on to the questions of the peaceful relations between states. It is true that the days before deployment of the of the missiles in West Germany were and the months were marked by Russian and Soviets East German statements as well. That deployment would be followed by the deployment in East Germany of countermeasures undescribed but countermeasures the Question for all of us was what kind of countermeasures since in fact as a matter of public record there have been missiles in East Germany for some time. And the question was well what new things could happen at the present time? We see no evidence of anything except the continuing of a program that was in place before deployment. How does one stop this? I would say as I know my colleagues are saying those who are participating in the process. We must find a way to get the Soviet Union back to the negotiating table. Let's take another call for Ambassador Ridgeway. Good afternoon. We're listening for your (00:21:21) question. Good afternoon. American students are studying fewer and fewer foreign languages. Do you see this fact as affecting our diplomatic skill in the future? And do you have any advice? Thank you. (00:21:35) I don't think the failure to study the foreign languages per se is hurting us in a diplomatic sense. What hurts us is what lies behind that the lack of interest in foreign cultures in foreign countries. The I'd like to share an anecdote with you from my own career history that I think will be Illuminating of the reason for my answer which may have surprised you for many many years diplomatic candidates were asked to write a portion of the examination in a foreign language and it was found that after some 30 years of that. The American diplomatic service was represented for the most part by people drawn from large Eastern and California schools specializing in foreign languages in particular French and it was possible for them to write Exquisite examinations in French, whether these were the best candidates for the practice of diplomacy. It was irrelevant. They wrote marvelous blue books in French for myself. I studied Spanish and Latin and things of that sort in high school, but I certainly could not have have written a competitive examination in a foreign language. It is not a part of the educational experience of Middle America. The answer to that problem has been to take candidates who can pass an examination on diplomatic history American history economics public administration questions of the day and for those who are successful, we do the language instruction ourselves, and we have perhaps in the Foreign Service Institute of the Department of State the finest and most effective language training center in the United States to and perhaps in the world today. So I would not be discouraged by the lack of the study of language itself, but I but I would be discouraged if for our future diplomacy by the apparent lack of interest in a world beyond our own. Let's take another call. Good afternoon. You're on the air. (00:23:38) Thank you Ambassador Ridgeway for this informative session. I've got a couple questions. I noticed that West Germany is under written a couple of large loans for the East German government this year and I wonder how you interpret this and then I was in East Berlin about a year and a half ago and I notice a lot of remodeling rebuilding of some of the famous old buildings in East Berlin going on. I wonder what this means. I'll drop off my chances. Thank you. (00:24:12) The large loan was in fact from West German banks and what made it particularly noteworthy was that it was accompanied by guarantee from the West German government itself. The bankers will tell you that the only way to interpret that set of loans is that it was good business. And those who look at the additional feature of it the government guarantee our most satisfied with the explanation that as I said earlier West and East Germany since 1969 have been trying to develop areas of cooperation. The government West German government guarantee was a statement of that government's willingness, even as the INF and missile discussion was becoming more and more warm over the summer months their willingness to continue cooperation where cooperation was possible. The remodeling in East Berlin is quite noticeable. And as you must know from your stay there there is still a great deal to be done. The anniversary of the city is coming up in 1987. Also Berlin while we do not recognize it as the capital of the German Democratic Republic is nevertheless the showpiece. City for the German Democratic Republic and it is in some respects the showpiece city of the entire East block. It is more prosperous more modern has more in its stores some have overheard the Russian tourists saying in downtown East Berlin my goodness. This must be like Paris and it is with a sense of the importance of that City continuing to be a symbol of the success of East Bloc socialism that a great deal of money is invested in keeping the city Modern and in bringing back all of the buildings of Berlin's former history of that would be by the way the pre Nazi history not the history of the 1930s so that same kind of development is not necessarily going on throughout the entire country. No, it is not. It's so it's mostly in the Berlin area. Okay, let's take another call for Ambassador Ridgeway. Good afternoon. You're on the air (00:26:28) good afternoon in your opinion about the direct way. Train of loyalty does the average East German citizen have to their government and how much of that loyalty do you think comes from gratitude for achievements of the German Democratic Republic? And how much do you think is the result of just nationalism or propaganda or even fear? (00:26:49) I think after 40 years the East German citizens have developed a sense of pride a great sense of pride in their own accomplishments. This very startling figures about East Germany, but it was it is the part of Germany that that the Allies did not have control over as the war came to an end. And it means of course it was the part of East Germany that did not benefit or the part of Germany that did not benefit from for example from the Marshall Plan having paid enormous reparations to the Soviet Union by about the mid-1950s the people of East Germany were in a position to begin to develop their own country and they have gone from essentially zero and agricultural as as I said before to number 11 in the world among industrialized nations. It has produced Pride. In their own accomplishment and the sense that they did it without any help from anyone much of the of the effort or the energy that goes to that kind of Pride. I would say and perhaps others would dispute me but I would say is found today then and their support for their athletic teams and the sense of many East Germans that there isn't much that they can point to because many do still sense that their country is divided and there is not an appeal to nationalism. In fact in either west or east Germany. Both countries have very carefully tried to stay away from an appeal to nationalism this pride in what they've accomplished and what they hope the world would see that they have accomplished is today lodged in those teams as they March onto the field and as they keep score and someone wanted to know what's 1984 going to bring to the average East German. It's going to be the Olympics and they're already concerned as Whether they're Runners can run faster and their their jumpers jump higher than hours 29 minutes now past 12:00 noon. My guest this afternoon is Rosanna Ridgeway. She is our ambassador to East Germany and if you try to get through a little while ago, we have one line open if you want to take a shot at it. It's 2276 thousand is the phone number in the Twin Cities one 800 695 hundred outside the metropolitan area. Let's take another call. Good afternoon. You're on the air. (00:29:15) Good afternoon. I heard a report recently that the Christian churches are heavily involved in the demonstrations against nuclear missiles in Western Europe. Have you any information or insight into the East German Church attitudes toward the arm race and second with a long-standing socialist traditions of all the Scandinavian countries coming out of the Lutheran out of Lutheran religious attitudes is a religious freedom improving in East Germany. And is there a possible rapprochement people between the church and the state in some unofficial sort of? like in Poland (00:29:52) you asked to very tough questions. I would like to say very quickly. That one should not compare the East Germany and Poland in any sense including the role of the church in the two countries. There's a vastly different tradition between the Roman Catholic Church in Poland and the Evangelical or Lutheran Church in in Germany, even so having said all of those things intellectually one on a day-to-day basis quickly asks oneself. What about this church in East Germany? Since 1978 the church and the state have been working under a very carefully forged modus operandi modus vivendi of the church in socialism a very carefully drawn agreement that the church would not set itself at odds with the Socialist objectives of the political organs of the state the state in turn allowing the church's freedom in what they would consider a transcendental World. Unfortunately many of the issues of the day are not all that transcendental they are very real and as you suggest they do involve such questions as arms control and missiles and only recently the Evangelical Church in East Germany went on record as opposing. Not only the emplacement or deployment of NATO missiles in West Germany, but also the deployment of SS 20s in the East block quite a surprising and very brave and courageous public stand for the churches who have become increasingly involved in questions internal to the German Democratic Republic that relate to social questions of the day including the environment many of the things that we have trouble with here are in fact appearing now in the East and the church has one institution that can speak out on them and you in fact have met with church officials or at least one church official who attempted to and did in fact a deliver a petition to you and it's not clear whether or not they got through the Soviet Embassy or not. Yes. They did. We you were there when it was developing. We were always standing by to receive the petition which was drawn upon the the Synod statement opposing missiles on both sides. The church itself is part of this agreement. Not to choose sides not to become politically involved did not want to deliver the petition to the American Embassy if it did not have permission to do the same with the Soviet Embassy and so after a period of some discussion permission was was given for them to deliver it in both places and we received it and perhaps importantly and significantly on the Armistice Day. All right, let's take another call from a listener. Good afternoon. You're on the air. (00:32:58) I have some friends that live in East Germany that East Germans and they think that their system is more democratic and more just and has more democracy in this discrimination against religion of minorities and the US and I was wondering if they have any basis for that if they if it has anything to do they know anything about stalinism the history of the Soviet Union and is that the reason or is there some other reason for that (00:33:24) call for another diplomatic answer? We forget in the discussion of the day-to-day differences between East and West that there are genuine ideological and philosophical differences between East and West at least those who represent the East I described an ideologically committed Marxist leadership in East Germany. It came out of the streets of the of Berlin in the 1920s the 1930s. It represents the worker movement. It represents trade unionism. It represents objectives that we would assign now to the field of social welfare, all of the ills of society as we recall it from the 1910s and 1920s provide the background and and the the Deep Soul held beliefs of these people and they honestly, They do believe their system is more fair to a larger number of people more just to a larger number of people more caring about ensuring a balance of opportunity among a larger number of people in order to make all of that work. They believe the government must be centralized and run by those very few people who see the light and for some that's that is owns the world should be and and they really believe it. So we here in the west sometimes assume that the present government and political system was imposed after the war and that's not quite the case that there were some strong movements there before that. That's right and there are today and East Germany some two million party members from among a population of 17 million. I would be the last to suggest that they are all ideologically committed after all the road to the top now is by being a part. Of the system, but even so there are those who look at our society and who find it chaotic who do not want that day to day challenge of finding their own place to live finding their own job making their own decisions for whom life is better off not lived as an adventure but as a rather guaranteed and too predictable course from beginning to end. Let's take another call. Good afternoon. We're listening for your (00:35:53) question today. I would like to ask him faster what might be rather sensitive question. And that is I'm wondering what the price of freedom in East Germany is now it's quite well known that these German government will sell its citizens. If you wish to really get someone free and they're not in it very sensitive position. You can actually buy their freedom and friend of mine. Did this he fell in love with it you Denise West Germany fell in love with a woman while at a Trade Fair in Leipzig and after a long courtship, he eventually purchased her. Freedom along with their two small children for around 50,000 marks, and I'm wondering what the going rate is now for human beings in East Germany. Thank you. (00:36:35) There's an old joke that I will borrow to answer. What is not at all the joking situation. It isn't that there are sensitive questions that there are sensitive answers. And in this case one hears very often of such programs. I know of none involving the United States government and for those who discuss such matters as they might involve the the government of the federal republic the sensitivity of it is such that we have ourselves preferred to leave the question to the West Germans in their dealings with the East Germans. All right, let's take another call. Good afternoon. You're on the (00:37:12) air are good afternoon. Mr. Ridgeway. I had been wounded in Germany when I was a young man and World War II and it wasn't until many years later that I've taken expensive trips to Germany and France and including Russia this past year and I've been concerned about the way the missile issue has been handled, especially when I remove very now to remark by Vice President George Bush who said that the the Missile Crisis will never be resolved. I'm Rusty 162 intermediate-range missiles of the British and French eventually will have to be considered in the Quest for an overall nuclear weapons agreement. Now as I understand it the Soviet Union had agreed that they would reduce all the missile weapons to that. Number possessed by the French and the Germans and I kind of agree with George Bush on this and I think maybe that's the problem that caused the Russians to walk out that if we wouldn't reduce the German and French missiles to the extent that the Russians were willing to lower their number that it was all over. Do you have that feeling I know you're very fair-minded person and I think that you know what I'm trying to ask (00:38:40) I see the situation from a somewhat different standpoint. I've been convinced from the outset that 1983 as far as these reported Soviet positions were concerned that 1983 was the year of propaganda the Soviet objective was not to obtain the lowest possible number or the most interesting combination of kinds of missiles, but rather through what one could sense in Europe was a flat-out propaganda. Whether it would be possible to separate Europeans from the United States and to leave on the continent of Europe only the Soviet Union as a major power in between the way to manage that kind of thing and to appear to be negotiating as to drop a suggestion here that maybe it's this number of missiles or it's this particular package or it's the British and the French or it's this or it's that I was my own view is that that was never a serious part of the negotiation in 1983 that what we saw was in fact what was intended a very real political effort not missiles at all, but a political effort to alter the nature of the Atlantic Alliance and the relationship between the United States and Europe. I think from what I know of Soviet negotiating practices that the day that they decide that that battle has been lost and that they must deal with the Atlantic Alliance as a June of Allied Nations, then we will have serious discussions in the area of disarmament and there will be no public discussion at that time of particular numbers at that instant this very careful complicated weighing of balances of missiles and kinds of missiles and where they are and how far they fly will be done by the experts in quiet and outside the glare of publicity. All right. Let's take another call. Good afternoon. You're on the air. (00:40:37) Hello. Yes. I'd like to ask the Ambassador. If she feels that the citizens of East Germany are as concerned about the threat of nuclear war as many people in the United States are thank you. (00:40:48) Absolutely, the citizens of East Germany and indeed the citizens of West Germany see themselves in context. Perhaps they must because history has placed them in context that context is the middle of Europe where the armies faced each other where the alliance's representing different systems face each other and they live on a day-to-day basis with the sense that conflict if it comes will be in their backyard. There are a lot of Americans. I think right now who might in response to that question or at least it suggests to me that question does that if is a response that shirt off and my people in groups that are trying to draw more attention to the whole business of nuclear weapons that we could only get through past the government's and that the people could meet with other people than a lot of these problems might be solved. You're our person in East Berlin and East Germany. Do you have any contact with people on the street? With people who are not representatives of the government. Do you ever have a chance to talk to chat with people who are not officials very little chance to do that. Perhaps is that because of the country or because of your role as Ambassador, it's more because of the way Society is organized and the fact that ambassadors who call and ask to see people get appointments and can certainly get to see those people but the speeches on both sides are just that that is not the Casual dialogue of people seeking to understand each other but is Representatives making speeches at each other the other opportunity the opportunity to meet people on the street in the shopping centers of while in the Centrum department store or out along the way in the cities of Leipzig Dresden, and the rest of those opportunities are very few people tend to be quite shy and quite withdrawn. And not at all open and and willing to discuss anything except perhaps the athletic teams with representatives of foreign countries. Is that because you're an ambassador or simply because you're an American or because you're a stranger or all three all three. Okay, let's take another call. Good afternoon. You're on the air. (00:43:08) Hello. My question has to do with understanding a little more detail of our Embassy that you run. I'm wondering if you could describe just a little bit about the operation of the embassy what would be some of the main working groups that have organized their what would be some of the main government agencies that the working groups would would interface within the government and what would be one or two, you know, sort of important policy objectives that that you're trying to work on these (00:43:44) days. We've had an embassy in East Berlin since 1974, and we're quite characteristic of an American Embassy anywhere. We have a consular section headed by Consul General who is in the business of issuing passports to Americans who lose them while traveling visas to East Germans coming to the United States whether it is because on official travel or business travel or to visit relatives here and some East Germans. Do travel each year to come visit relatives here as well as to continue to keep track of those cases of East Germans trying to leave East Germany who have not been able to do so and earlier caller spoke of of a marriage case West German East German. We also have cases in which Americans have married East Germans or wish to marry East Germans and the East German Bob is not able to get a visa and we do the representation to the extent that we're able to of that Americans interest in getting the fiance out of the country. We have an economic section, which is concerned also with the commercial work and includes a representative of our own Department of Agriculture. We have agricultural attaché and we are concerned with the development of the grain trade between the United States and the German Democratic Republic. It is a very competitive business these days we have had better years in the past and we are having at the moment principally because of the lack of credit for American grain purchases, and we're having trouble keeping up with the Canadians and the argentine's and the Brazilians on Government Credit packages, but we work with those people in the East German government who are responsible for making purchasing decisions in order to sell American Products. Work with American firms that want to appear at the Leipzig fair and to become established in in East Germany. We stay in touch with representatives of American firms Dow Honeywell, Minnesota Mining are all now with representation in in East Germany and we stay in touch with that through our Embassy we are concerned of course is the day-to-day events in East Germany and we have people who are assigned to those things. So we're a very average looking American Embassy complete with all of the sections including those people. Then who have to administer all of us who are who are doing other things the issues of the day are twofold we've been concentrating on the global issues of the East-West situation, which become in fact issues between perhaps United States and the Soviet Union which East Germany is not a major player in our own relationship. We have unresolved claims questions. Dating from World War Two we have an interest in whether or not the Jewish groups are going to be able to reach agreement with the German Democratic Republic on a payment for Holocaust victims. The East Germans would like a better trade picture. And so we again even in this area look very normal and very average. All right. It's twelve and a half minutes now before one o'clock if you try to get through earlier and all the lines were tied up. We do have some open lines now if you'd like to ask Ambassador Ridgeway a question in the Twin Cities 2276 thousand is the number to call that's two two seven six thousand and outside the metropolitan area of the Twin Cities, but inside Minnesota call us toll-free at 1-800-669-9133. Take another call. Good afternoon. You're on the air. (00:47:35) Good afternoon. I have a comment and a question. I was interested in ambassadors comment about the propaganda year. One statement that I heard is that maybe our deployment of these missiles just pretty much brought us up to the number and modernity of those on the Russian side, which maybe we're a little bit ahead and then you get into this Leapfrog with business, but my question is in high school when people said what are you going to do for a job I said, well, I think I'm going into the Foreign Service because I like languages and history and that kind of stuff then as it turned out. I happened to get through medical school and I've been in practice for 30 years in international Circles of diplomacy. It's been my observation that many countries use Physicians who happen to be in their mid 50s or older as ambassadors, and I'm wondering whether adults can keep still Into the Foreign Service in I'll hang up and (00:48:45) listen. All right. Thanks for your call. The answer is yes, we've had the same social revolution in the Foreign Service as as has occurred elsewhere in our society. The only regulation on age today is that one must be aged a minimum of age 21 at the time one takes the oath for the presidential commission that goes with being a career Diplomat and otherwise at the other end of the matter one must be in a position to serve at least five years before mandatory retirement, which is age 65. So it's wide open and anyone may take the examination and be appointed within that very broad range of your opportunities. Let's take another call. Good afternoon. You're on the (00:49:25) air afternoon. My question is in reference to visas and things like that kind of relates to the question earlier how difficult is it for an East German citizen to get a visa to visit this country for instance? (00:49:41) It's not at all difficult to get a visa from us. The trick is to get the exit permit and the passport from their own government. And that is extremely difficult and very rare and we don't see too many people who are in possession of such exit permits unless they are pensioners that is women aged 60 and hire men aged 65 or higher in between only rarely. Is it possible to get the exit permit do they come for the Visa first or last last last time? Okay, let's take another call. Good afternoon. We're listening for your question. (00:50:21) Yes. Thank you. Two questions. Please one would be the at least myself, but I think many of the Americans feel that East Europeans tend to Watch Big Brother watch the east of the communist or the East European on the street with any conversations with nine East Europeans such as they do in Russia when your escort around by guides who report back on your activities and who you talked with would not the populace be aware of Big Brother watching them and whether or not they said anything of consequence to a Westerner would they not feel that? They would be under suspicion that they might have expressed non-communist feelings that would lead to discredit upon their system. That would be the first question and the second question was I'm not sure I understood correctly. It almost sounded like a political dodging of the question. No disrespect meant but I didn't hear your answer to the question raised by George Bush's statement. I heard your comment about propaganda etcetera and that the Russians weren't after anything. (00:51:37) Okay, let's hear from the Ambassador on those two questions on the first II think that people just in their conversation with visitors in the like ask themselves who needs the hassle. These are people who come and grow through our country. They don't have to live here. They don't have to make their way make the easiest kind of life possible. So unless I'm authorized to speak to foreign Representatives or foreign tourists or unless there's a good reason for me to do so, why should I go out and have a problem? It isn't a question of whether people will not know what they say or misunderstand what they say. They just you don't need that kind of problem in your daily life there on the other. I wasn't aware that George Will was being quoted to me. So now I'm not certain what part of the question where I think he was talking about George Bush and the caller about four or five calls ago about the amount the missiles and I'm not sure that I can recall exactly what he has. It was the one Hundred and sixty-two and that no answer your comments on the British and the French and the like I think all of that is is a confusion of several questions, which will be straightened out only when we get to the real negotiations. All right, let's take another call. Good afternoon. You're on the air. (00:52:47) Yes short time ago you commented that knowledge of laugh foreign language is not considered as asexual here is it does among Europeans which is understandable and I certainly agree with you that being able to write an essay Exquisite French would necessarily qualify one for for diplomatic service. However, I think it's it should be brought to the attention of the American people that in the crisis in Iran homework who was consulted about whether or not we should admit the show the Rockefeller oil interests and helpful on Kissinger were consulted and considering how many professors of of the Iranian culture there are in universities around. The country there was not I heard one man say there was not one reporter in the Iranian situation who spoke the Farsi (00:53:42) language? Okay, ma'am. Can we get the ambassador's response? So we've got some other callers waiting here. Let's do it. I just agree. That one does need this the study. I just would not make it a requirement for entry. Okay. Let's take another call. Good afternoon. You're on the (00:53:55) air. Thank you. I turned on a little late. I'm wondering did the Ambassador or observe any acknowledgement in East Germany at the time when we celebrated the try Centennial there were big digs in West Germany and of course in this country. (00:54:13) There was not very much. We put a display in our own Embassy window, but it was a very difficult public relations questions for all parties concerned and the celebration for the most part was between the United States and the Federal Republic and the East German participation was passive if at all, all right, let's take another call. Good afternoon. You're on the air. (00:54:39) Yes. We have a West German friend with relatives in East Germany. And he says that the East Germans are very dissatisfied with their Pleasant present political situation and long for that which is the West Germans. Enjoy. Once we went through Checkpoint Charlie in East Berlin, and we noted that the attitude of the officials there were quite hostile to Americans and I wondered if that is just the general attitude of East Germans toward Americans or if it was because they were officials my other Section the question is this in West Germany? Apparently it is very much on their mind that they would like reunification. Is this the perception that the Ambassador has as well. I'll hang up and listen to her answer. Thank you. (00:55:29) Thank the attitudes of East Germans toward Americans change by situation and by topic and by the kind of work someone's what someone is doing. I certainly when I go back and forth to between East and West Berlin and noise properly treated and I wouldn't describe it as cordial but it is certainly correct Others May simply be having a bad day when they deal with American tourists because I perceive no fixed attitude of animosity toward Americans. We met bewilder them, but no fixed attitude as for reunification a longing for a better day. I think that is broadly held on both sides of the East Quest. All right. I think we have time for one more quick question. Good afternoon. Go ahead with your (00:56:16) question. Okay, what do you think would happen if a person went before like the United Nations Council and told everyone to grow up and put their toys away so to say (00:56:33) I suppose be greeted with the same silence that just came with your question. It's hard one. That's a hard one one would know what to do with it. But I think there's a great deal in your question that the perhaps is real for for our time. All right, that's all the time we have for this afternoon. Thanks very much Roseanne Ridgeway US ambassador to East Germany for being with us this afternoon. Thank you. It was fun for me. Alright Lee acts tall. Are you there? Yes, I am rich.

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