US Ambassador Amy Gutmann and Bush’s grandson Pierce Bush unveil the statue in front of the consulate on Clayallee Photo: Fabian Matzerath
By Carl Victor Wachs
George HW Bush († 94) was one of the architects of reunification. The ex-president of the USA negotiated the integration of the GDR into the Federal Republic with Helmut Kohl (†87) and Mikhail Gorbachev (†91).
Yesterday, US Ambassador Amy Gutmann (73) unveiled a 2.4 meter high bronze statue in his honor on the Bush Plaza named after her at the site of the US Consulate on Clayallee. The sculpture, designed by artist Chas Fagan (57), is a replica of a statue of the 41st US President in Houston.
George HW Bush (1924-2018), 41st President of the United States Photo: bp_cs_hpl
It is a gift from the George & Barbara Bush Foundation to the US Embassy and represents the unbreakable bond between the United States and Germany.
Gutmann: “President George HW Bush stood for democracy, self-determination, individual freedom and the rule of law. At this time, as we collectively support Ukraine against Russia’s brutal and unlawful aggression, he continues to inspire us to stand up for a united and free Europe.” It is often forgotten that Bush was a war hero.
The bronze statue stands in front of the US Consulate in de Clayallee Photo: Fabian Matzerath
Also at the ceremony was Pierce Bush, 35, grandson of George HW Bush. The scion of the famous family, who once ran for the US Congress himself, said to BZ: “It was important to my grandfather that reunification wasn’t an American moment, but a German one. He cleared the stage for Germany to shine. Germany was so, so important to him.”