Foreign Minister Frank‑Walter Steinmeier issued the following statement today (24 August) on the death of Henning Voscherau:

“I am very saddened by the news that Henning Voscherau has died.

We have lost a great north German Social Democrat today.

Henning Voscherau was a political colleague, a companion and a friend – a man of firm convictions and unswerving values.

As Mayor of Hamburg, he shaped the fate of his native city for almost a decade. In turbulent times, he astutely recognised the great opportunities and possibilities created by the fall of the Iron Curtain and the end of the Cold War and was able to make use of them for the benefit of Hamburg.

Henning Voscherau’s voice was heard far beyond the confines of his home town. We shall miss it.”