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My fellow citizens,

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What a year we have
behind us!

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In 2020, our world
was struck by

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something completely
unexpected.

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A previously
unknown virus

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that has invaded
our bodies and our lives.

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It hits us in the places
where we are most human:

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in close contact, in hugs,
conversations, celebrations.

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The virus turns normal
behaviour into a risk

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– and turns previously unfamiliar protective measures into something normal.

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2020, this year of the pandemic,
was a year of learning.

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In spring we had to
react to a virus

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while having hardly any knowledge
or information about it.

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We had to
make decisions

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at a point when
we could only hope

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that they would turn out
to be correct.

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The coronavirus pandemic was and
is a once-in-a-century

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political, social and economic
challenge.

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It is a historic crisis

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that has demanded a great deal of
all of us and too much of some of us.

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I know that mustering
this historic effort

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has required tremendous trust
and patience on your part,

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and continues
to do so.

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For that I am sincerely
grateful to you.

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At the end of this relentless year,
we should also

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pause to catch our breath –
and to mourn.

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We as a society
must not forget

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how many people
lost loved ones,

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and were not able to be close to them
in their final hours.

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I cannot ease their pain.

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But I am thinking of them
this evening.

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I can only imagine how painful
it must be for those

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who are mourning for loved ones
lost to coronavirus

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or are themselves struggling with
the lingering effects of this illness

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to see wilful deniers

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disputing the virus’s existence.

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Conspiracy theories are not
only dangerous and untrue,

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they are also cynical and cruel
to those who are suffering.

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2020 was a year of worry
and uncertainty.

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But it was also
a year

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when so many went above
and beyond themselves,

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without asking
any attention for it.

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We have seen this in
the doctors,

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nurses and care workers
in our hospitals,

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nursing homes and
other facilities.

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We have seen it in the employees
of our health offices,

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who found themselves suddenly
thrust into the centre

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of the battle
against the virus.

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We have seen it in the dedication
of our Bundeswehr,

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who are providing support in every corner and at every turn.

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Countless people have helped
make it possible

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for our lives to go on
despite the pandemic:

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in supermarkets
and freight transport,

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at post offices,
on buses and trains,

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at police stations, in schools
and day-care centres,

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at churches,
in editorial offices.

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I am also thankful for

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the discipline that the vast majority of
people show in wearing their masks

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and maintaining
social distancing.

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To me this is an expression
of what makes it possible

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to live in a humane society
in the first place:

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consideration for others,
awareness

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of when to show restraint,

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and a sense that we are
part of a larger community.

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This attitude on the part of
millions of our fellow citizens

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has helped us greatly to get
through the pandemic so far.

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And it will remain necessary
in the new year.

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But I feel hope, and

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in recent days this hope has
been reflected in the faces

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of the first people
to be vaccinated:

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the oldest among us
and those who care for them,

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and the medical staff of
intensive care units

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– not only here in Germany,

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but throughout Europe
and around the world.

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Their numbers are growing daily.

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Step by step, other age groups
and professions will join them,

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until finally the vaccine is
available to all who want it.

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I too will be vaccinated
when my turn comes.

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Another thing that gives me hope
are scientists – around the world,

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but especially here in Germany.

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The first reliable coronavirus test
was developed here,

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and so too was the first vaccine
to be approved in Europe

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and many other
parts of the world.

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It came out of
the research

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of a German company,
and is now

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being produced as a
German-American collaboration.

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Uğur Sahin and Özlem Türeci
from Mainz,

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the founders, told me

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that people from 60 countries
are working for their company.

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I can think of no better example of

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how European and
international cooperation,

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the strength of diversity,
is what brings progress.

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The tasks that the pandemic has
placed before us remain formidable.

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Many business owners,
employees,

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freelancers
and artists

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fear for their livelihoods.

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In this emergency situation,
which is no fault of their own,

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the Federal Government has
not abandoned them.

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Government support on an
unprecedented scale is helping them.

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Improved rules for short-time
work are taking effect.

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These measures can
protect jobs.

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So will everything be about
coronavirus in the new year?

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No, and it wasn’t
this year either.

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Even before the pandemic,
the world

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we live in was changing
rapidly and fundamentally.

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This makes it all the more important for Germany to devote all of

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its energy and creativity to developing
bold ideas for the future.

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For our economy,
our mobility

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and our lives to become
climate-friendly.

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For all people
in Germany

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to benefit from equivalent
living conditions

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and genuine fairness in
educational opportunities.

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For us, as Europeans,
to better hold our own

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in a globalised,
digital world.

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My fellow citizens,

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There is no way around
the fact that

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these are difficult days and
weeks for our country.

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And this will remain so
for quite a while.

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For some time to come,
it will be up to all of us,

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to determine how we get
through this pandemic.

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This is a hard winter,
and it is far from over.

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We know how we can
combat the virus.

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Besides the vaccine,
the most effective tool

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lies in our
own hands:

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it is for every one of us
to follow the rules.

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All of us together.

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Finally, I would like to say
something personal.

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There will be federal general elections
in nine months,

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and I will not be running
for re-election.

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Today I am likely speaking
to you on New Year’s

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as Federal Chancellor

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for the last time.

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I don’t think I am exaggerating
when I say that

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never in the past
15 years have we all

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experienced such
a difficult year

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– and never have we
greeted the new year

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with so much hope,
despite all of

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our concerns
and some scepticism.

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And so you and
your families

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have my very best wishes
for good health,

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confidence and blessings
in the New Year 2021.