What an honour for the people of Kosovo, first and foremost. Dear Lord Mayor of Potsdam, Mike Schubert, thank you for having us, dear Moritz van Dülmen.
Dear Minister Bodnar, honourable former President of the Federal Republic of Germany, Mr. Joachim Gauck. Dear Minister Scharping, thank you so much, so much for the great honour through your very kind introduction.
Dear members of the jury of the M100 Media Award, journalists, media representatives, members of the civil society, esteemed guests, ladies and gentlemen. Guten Abend und vielen herzlichen Dank. I am so sorry that I cannot deliver my speech in German, but I promise that I will try.
But being President and learning foreign languages, is unfortunately a little difficult at this time. But standing before you today – and seeing so many champions of democracy in this historic city of Potsdam, is a profound honour; one that truly humbles me deeply. So thank you from the bottom of my heart once again.
Last night, I read a line from a book I was gifted just yesterday in Warsaw. It said that every generation of children offers mankind anew the possibility of rebuilding his ruin of a world. It reminded me that the current generation of children in Kosovo, my children, our children, must ensure, we must jointly ensure, that they never get to know the opposite of peace and the opposite of democracy. They are the very first generation in our nation’s history to grow up without a war.
The very first generation. And we must ensure, we must jointly ensure, that they never get to know the opposite of peace, that they never get to know the opposite of democracy. We must ensure that they never have to go through what we had to go through.
Just two years ago, I was sitting in the audience of the M100 Award ceremony, watching as you were awarding the M100 Award to the people of Ukraine. Beforehand, a video was played, one depicting the pain, the suffering, the destruction of innocent people, and the destruction of their ancestral homes. But also showing the courage, the determination and the resilience of Ukrainians to fight for their freedom and democracy with whatever it takes.
But as it happens with everyone coming from Kosovo, when we watch these videos from Ukraine or elsewhere where conflict is happening, it is not just a distant feeling or about some abstract notions of international law norms and the necessity to defend them. It is so much more than that. For us, it is a horror relived.
A pain felt over and over again. A wound just too deep. But one that has never stopped us from becoming survivors who thrive.
We were in their place, we were in their shoes. We saw the destruction and we lived the suffering and we saw what the opposite of democracy brings. Which is why today we are so committed, so unwavering and so determined to fight every fight and to pay any price to ensure the survival of democracy and its success.
The people of Kosovo will always be champions of democracy – because we know very well what it means to live without it. And that is not the world we want. Our mission, in this lifetime, is to ensure that that is not the world our children will inherit.
So, I stand before you today, asking you to work side by side to make sure that this generation of children in Kosovo will live the promise of peace. The promise of peace and democracy. And strive toward a better world for all of us.
In this endeavour, the value of our closest allies and partners is indispensable. Kosovo has learned first-hand the transformative and existential power of strong alliances built on values. We are who we are today, because in 1999, Germany, alongside other NATO allies, came together in support of our liberation struggle to end Milosevic’s genocidal regime.
On 24th March 1999, the Bundeswehr aircrafts joined the NATO air campaign to halt the suffering and destruction that was then unfolding in Kosovo.
Minister Scharping, what else can depict what we were going through better than the words in your own book: “Wir dürfen nicht vergessen.” We must not forget. And we will never forget. We will always remember, because how can we not? How can we not? We are a generation of children that grew up in an apartheid-like system that went on to become a genocidal war against our very own existence.
So that decision in 1999 from people like you and because of courageous journalists like many of you who dared to tell and defend the truth. That decision marked a decisive turning point in Germany’s foreign policy, but it was also a decisive turning point in the history of the North Atlantic Alliance itself.
But for us, for those of us in the ground, watching you above, coming to save our lives, for us it meant so much more. It meant that we were being saved. It meant that finally we can exist.
Today in that very spirit, German soldiers continue to serve in Kosovo proudly carrying the legacy of united action in defence of enduring peace and security. For that, I want to thank, on behalf of all the people of Kosovo, over 50,000 German soldiers who have served in Kosovo since 1999, including our very esteemed Lord Mayor of Potsdam, Mr. Schubert, who came to serve for peace and security and to make sure that we never go back. You’ve put your lives on the line to defend what we have jointly achieved.
You’ve risked everything so that finally we can have a chance for peace, so we humbly thank you all for your service. And this engagement is not only crucial for Kosovo and for peace in our region, it was equally strategic for the European continent and for the global democratic community at large.
So, when I speak of Kosovo’s ambitions to join the European Union and NATO, I see an opportunity to build a stronger, more resilient, and more secure and deterrent Kosovo as an equal member of the Euro-Atlantic family. But more than that, I see a Kosovo that is able and capable to give back, so that finally we can have a chance to give back. As we often say back home, the strength of a nation should not be determined by its sheer size, but by the story it has to tell.
Ladies and gentlemen, as the world undergoes tectonic transformations, we in Kosovo choose to preserve the foundations of democracies and to safeguard the tenets of emancipating societies by instilling the rule of law and advancing democratic freedoms.
In this rapidly changing environment, we constantly seek our compass. It is these very democratic values that have been our constant moral compass on everything we strive and everything we do. With the booming of artificial intelligence, the technological transformation, the digital transition, the global climate challenge, as well as other major social movements, the availability of information becomes crucial.
Information is a powerful tool – one that shapes societies, influences policies, and charts the course of history. That’s why the mission of delivering truthful and honest information may very well be the most sacred mission of our time.
Because as we know, we do not live any longer in a world of classic wars. The battles are no longer fought, only with bombs and missiles. Words, too, have become a weapon. Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine has underscored the disruptive and dangerous power of propaganda. This is why truthful reporting, fact-checking, the credibility of sources, transparency, and accountability must be the cornerstones of our modern age. This information poses the greatest threat to the very foundation of media freedom, and to the critical role that media plays in our societies.
Therefore, as we often hear, media freedom and the fight against disinformation are not opposing forces. Instead, they are two sides of the same coin. And when combined, they help us preserve information integrity.
And most importantly, it helps us safeguard democracy. Our very hard-won democracy. If we do not stand firm in this commitment, we are bound to witness a world of growing polarisation, diminishing the understanding between us, and ever-increasing uncertainty born of competing narratives.
This is not a moment to retreat or give up. And that is why gatherings like this one tonight are more than just a beautiful coming together. They are a testament to our unwavering determination to press forward. Because I believe that fighting against disinformation and propaganda, just like fighting to defend democracy, is not just a task for today, but the task of our lifetime – it is our pathway, our pathway towards prosperity and peace.
And a prosperous democracy, ladies and gentlemen, is one that is also built on the premise of gender equality. Nothing what I said so far stands a chance against the inequality of opportunities. We must understand that it’s in the rising of women that we will also witness the rising of the world.
When women rise, they don’t just lift themselves; they lift entire nations. They shatter glass ceilings, break down barriers, and challenge the status quo. Their voices demand to be heard, their strength reshapes the world, and their courage ignites positive change.
Tere is no doubt: The rise of women is the rise of humanity, bringing the human dimension to politics, which is so crucial in the current efforts to divide us.
And tonight, as I stand in front of you, I also think of all the girls and women back home. And I say to them that it’s in the rising of all of you that we find the force to make history, to claim justice, to continue to fight for rule of law and transform our future. With you and through you, we stand stronger, prouder, and taller day after day.
Ladies and gentlemen,
Kosovo’s story is one of belief in democracy, at any price. No matter how fragile at times, democracy is always worth fighting for. But more particularly, it should never be taken as a given.
If we forget that, if we allow ourselves to become complacent, we leave a void. And in that void, something darker can grow.
That’s why we need to remember that the fight for democracy is never an individual one. It’s our collective effort. It belongs to each and every one of us. And if we fall silent, if we step back, we help plant the seeds of division that seek to tear down everything we have achieved together. But we simply won’t allow that. We will not. As any vacuum in our democracy is a renewed possibility for tyranny and autocracy.
And that is not who we are. We stand for freedom, for dignity, for the promise of the world where the power of a country does not rest in its size or the amount of its weapons, but with its ability to stand on the right side of history and with its ability to stand up for democracy. The more I think about it, the more I’m convinced that this award is not about me. In fact, it’s about what I represent.
I represent a people who have fought for centuries and who continue to fight with unwavering determination to protect our hard-won freedoms. I represent a republic that has become a shining example of what democracy can achieve. And this makes me profoundly proud.
And in that spirit, I dedicate this award to those who came before us, the dignified, the resilient, the everyday, hard-working citizens of my country. As well as to those who will carry the torch forward into a brighter, more hopeful tomorrow. On this note, I also want to take a moment to extend my heartfelt congratulations to Prime Minister Tusk, a very good friend of our country, for sharing this honour with me.
Poland and Kosovo both share a very painful past. A painful past transformed into unparalleled resilience, courage, and unwavering commitment to democratic values. These are the stories we must continue to share with the world.
Because the success of democracy anywhere in the world is the failure of tyranny and autocracy elsewhere. So let me conclude by thanking you all for what you do in your everyday work. Thank you to the M100 Board for honouring me and through me the people of Kosovo with this prestigious award.
And thank you, Lord Mayor Schubert, for being an outstanding champion of democracy in Kosovo, in Germany, and elsewhere in the world. Our presence here tonight is a genuine testament to the resilience and the triumph, the triumph of democracies. And I hope that together with all of you, we can turn it into a legacy worth of the respect and appreciation of the generations that come after us.
