Tuesday, 27 June 2023, NRW, Germany: Federal President Dr. Frank-Walter Steinmeier visited the Ruhr region and the southern Münsterland with around 150 foreign ambassadors working in Germany and high-ranking representatives of international organisations.
The information and meeting tour with the diplomatic corps began in Mülheim an der Ruhr at the Siemens Energy company, whose centre of excellence for energy transition technologies stands for transformation in the Ruhr region. The Federal President and the diplomats subsequently visited the Zollverein – Tariff Union Coal Mine Industrial Complex, where Premier Hendrik Wüst invited the Federal President and his guests to a luncheon. In the afternoon, they continued to Dortmund to the German Football Museum. On the way there, the Federal President and the diplomatic corps learned about the conversion and renaturation of the Emscher river. The day ended with a reception for the Federal President at Nordkirchen Castle.
Since 1996, the federal presidents have organised an annual information and encounter trip with the heads of mission of the diplomatic corps and international organisations to one of the 16 federal states. The aim is to present Germany and the diversity of its regions to the foreign diplomats.
Last year, Bavaria was the destination of the trip.In total, the field trip included stopovers in Mülheim an der Ruhr (visit of Siemens Energy Global GmbH & Co. KG); Essen (Customs Union, allocution of the German Federal President in the framework of a luncheon hosted by the Premier of NRW); Castrop-Rauxel (visit of the Natural Reserve „Emscherland“); Dortmund (visit of the German Football Museum); and Nordkirchen Castle (evening reception).
For further information
Federal Presidency of Germany: https://www.bundespraesident.de/SharedDocs/Pressemitteilungen/DE/2023/06/230609-Reiseaufruf-Diplomatenausflug.html