Frank-Walter Steinmeier

Frank-Walter Steinmeier (born 5 January 1956) is a German politician who has served as President of Germany since 2017. He is a member of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) and holds a doctorate in law. Before becoming president, he held many important positions in German government.

Steinmeier was Minister for Foreign Affairs from 2005 to 2009 and again from 2013 to 2017. He also served as Vice-Chancellor of Germany from 2007 to 2009. In 2016, he was chosen to be the candidate for president and was elected in February 2017. He was re-elected in 2022 for a second and final term as president.

As a politician, Steinmeier is known for supporting reforms and working with different groups. He helped create important changes to Germany’s welfare system. Some people have criticised his policies toward certain countries, but he continues to play a key role in guiding Germany.

Personal life

Frank-Walter Steinmeier was born in 1956 in Detmold. His friends call him Frank. His father was a carpenter, and his mother came from a place called Breslau, which is now in Poland.

After finishing school, he joined the German Air Force for 15 months and then studied law and political science. He later got a job working with a professor and earned a doctorate in law.

Steinmeier is married to Elke Büdenbender and they have one daughter. He enjoys listening to jazz and watching football. He is also a Protestant and is active in his church in Neukölln.

In his early career, Steinmeier worked as an adviser for media laws in Lower Saxony and later became the director of the Personal Office for the prime minister of Lower Saxony, Gerhard Schröder.

Political career at the federal level

Schröder Federal Chancellery, 1998–2005

In November 1998, Steinmeier became Secretary of State and Commissioner for the Federal Intelligence Services after Schröder's election victory. He replaced Bodo Hombach as head of the office of the chancellor in 1999. During this time, he advised Schröder and helped secure support in parliament for economic reforms known as "Agenda 2010".

As Commissioner, Steinmeier coordinated Germany’s intelligence services. In 2003, he supported Schröder’s decision to ally with Russia and France against the U.S.-led war against Iraq. He also approved sending a German intelligence officer to work with American commander Tommy Franks in Iraq.

First term as Foreign Minister, 2005–2009

On 22 November 2005, Steinmeier became Minister of Foreign Affairs after the 2005 federal elections. He was the first Social Democratic Party (SPD) Foreign Minister since Willy Brandt (1966–1969).

He prepared for Germany taking over the presidency of the Council of the European Union in 2007. Following the departure of Franz Müntefering, Steinmeier also became Vice-Chancellor.

Steinmeier often had different views on foreign affairs from Chancellor Angela Merkel but worked well with her on issues like Iran’s nuclear program and climate change goals. He believed Germany should begin planning to withdraw troops from Afghanistan by 2013 and supported Turkey joining the European Union.

Opposition leader, 2009–2013

After the SPD’s poor performance in the 2009 federal elections, Steinmeier became leader of the opposition in the Bundestag. He criticized Merkel’s government for increasing national debt and favoring the wealthy.

Second term as Foreign Minister, 2013–2017

Steinmeier was reappointed Foreign Minister in December 2013. He reviewed Germany’s foreign policy and met with many people involved in the ministry.

He supported a balanced approach in the Russo-Ukrainian War, advocating for mediation through the OSCE. He also worked on peace efforts in Syria and hosted meetings to discuss the situation in eastern Ukraine.

Political positions

Human rights

Steinmeier believes abolishing the death penalty is key to Germany’s human rights policy. He has called for its end in countries like Uzbekistan and criticized decisions by Egypt and Turkey regarding the death penalty.

European integration

Steinmeier supported efforts to strengthen Europe, including addressing the euro zone crisis and improving relations with the United Kingdom after its decision to leave the European Union.

Energy policy

In 2007, Steinmeier opposed European Commission proposals to separate ownership of energy networks, as suggested in the Third Energy Package.

Relations with France

Steinmeier attended meetings with French leaders and joined in diplomatic missions to countries like Moldova, Georgia, Tunisia, Nigeria, and Bangladesh.

Relations with Russia

Steinmeier worked to calm tensions between Estonia and Russia over a memorial and supported engagement with Russia despite criticisms. He believed excluding Russia from international groups was not helpful.

Relations with the United States

Steinmeier supported Barack Obama during his presidential campaign and later criticized Donald Trump’s views and actions as U.S. president.

Relations with Central Asia

Steinmeier criticized Turkmenistan for slow progress on human rights and rule of law. He also worked on peace plans for Georgia and Abkhazia and visited Afghanistan to discuss Germany’s role there.

Israeli–Palestinian conflict

Steinmeier supports a two-state solution for Israel and Palestine. He welcomed United Nations resolutions on Israeli settlements and praised speeches calling for peace based on 1967 borders.

Relations with Iran

Steinmeier visited Iran in 2015 and supported the nuclear agreement that allowed Iran to maintain a civilian nuclear program in exchange for lifting sanctions.

Relations with the Arab world

Steinmeier visited refugee camps in Jordan to learn about Syrians fleeing the civil war. He supported efforts to destroy Syria’s chemical weapons and co-chaired conferences on the Syrian refugee situation.

Relations with Greece

Steinmeier rejected claims for war reparations from Greece, stating that all issues from World War II were settled.

Relations with Namibia

In 2024, Steinmeier said it was time for Germany to apologize to Namibia for the Herero and Nama genocide from 1904 to 1908.

Presidency (2017–present)

First presidential term

Candidacy for President

In June 2016, President Joachim Gauck decided not to run for re-election, so people started looking for someone to take his place. In November 2016, Angela Merkel and her team agreed with the Social Democrats to support Frank-Walter Steinmeier to be the next president in the election on 12 February 2017.

On that day, Germany’s Federal Convention chose Steinmeier as president with 931 votes out of 1,260. He became president on 19 March 2017 after his predecessor’s term ended, and took his official promise on 22 March 2017.

2017 Bundestag election

After the federal election in September 2017, talks began between Christian Democratic Union, Christian Social Union, Free Democratic Party and the Green Party to form a government. However, after four weeks of discussion, the Free Democrats left the talks. This made forming a new government difficult, and Martin Schulz of the Social Democratic Party had said he did not want to join another big team with Merkel’s party. Steinmeier helped bring the leaders together for more talks. Finally, Merkel’s party and the Social Democrats agreed to work together again, and Merkel became Chancellor once more on 14 March 2018.

Political positions as president

In October 2017, Steinmeier visited leaders in Moscow.

Second presidential term

On 13 February 2022, he was re-elected as president.

Ukraine controversy

After the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, Steinmeier said he was sorry for supporting Russia in the past. He realized that his support for a big gas pipeline called Nord Stream 2 was a mistake. In April 2022, he spoke about needing a court to hold Russia’s leaders responsible for their actions. He said he had wrongly thought Russia’s leader wouldn’t hurt his own country so much.

In April 2022, Steinmeier planned to visit Kyiv but decided not to because Ukraine didn’t want to meet him. Ukraine had criticized him for his close ties with Russia in the past.

On 25 October 2022, Steinmeier visited Ukraine after an earlier visit was cancelled because of safety issues. When he returned to Berlin on 28 October, he talked about the terrible effects of the war and said Germany was facing its biggest challenge since becoming one country again. He warned that hard times were still to come.

On 29 November 2022, Steinmeier talked more about the situation in Ukraine, saying it was too soon to discuss safety promises for Ukraine. He said stopping the fighting now would mean Russia kept the land it had taken, which would be wrong.

Polish relations

On 1 August 2024, the 80th anniversary of the Warsaw Uprising, Steinmeier apologized to survivors for Germany’s past actions. He announced plans for a memorial in Berlin to honor the Polish victims of Nazi Germany.

Presidential visits to foreign countries

Main article: List of presidential trips made by Frank-Walter Steinmeier

Other activities

Frank-Walter Steinmeier has been involved in many important groups and organizations. He has served on the boards or as a member of several groups that work on topics like Christian-Jewish cooperation, Protestant church matters, journalism, peace prizes, and organ transplantation. Some of these roles ended in 2017 when he became President of Germany.

He was also connected to groups like Aktion Deutschland Hilft, the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, and KfW, but these roles ended when he took on his presidential duties.

Recognition

Frank-Walter Steinmeier has received many honors for his work. He was given special degrees, called honorary doctorates, from several universities in different countries. He also received important awards, such as the Willy Brandt Prize and the Leo Baeck Medal, recognizing his contributions to peace and understanding among people.

Honours

Frank-Walter Steinmeier has received many important awards and honors from Germany and other countries. These honors show respect for his work as a leader and diplomat.

He is the Grand Master of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany and also holds the Grand Cross Special Class of the same order. Steinmeier has also been honored by many other nations, including Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Denmark, Ecuador, France, Finland, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, Spain, Sweden, and the United Kingdom. These awards recognize his contributions to international relations and leadership.