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Roundup: Former German chancellor Helmut Schmidt dies at 96

Xinhua, November 11, 2015 Adjust font size:

Helmut Schmidt, who served as chancellor of West Germany from 1974 to 1982, died at age 96 at his home in Hamburg on Tuesday, according to German media.

German media Focus Online reported the health of the former chancellor had deteriorated drastically since Monday.

Schmidt had surgery in early September in Hamburg because of a blood clot in the leg. After two weeks, he left the hospital at his own request and returned to his home in Hamburg, where he was looked after round the clock.

Schmidt was considered as the most important chancellor in the postwar period by Germans, according to polls.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel led a commemoration of the former chancellor before a union faction by observing a minute's silence on Tuesday.

Merkel praised Schmidt's commitment to the European monetary system and to deeper European integration.

"Schmidt has rendered outstanding services to our country. We will never forget," she added.

German President Joachim Gauck described Schmidt as "a passionately reasonable thinker."

Gauck praised the former chancellor in a letter of condolence to his daughter Susanne Kennedy Schmidt for his "resolute action in difficult situations, his ability to recognize and to create what is feasible, but also his ability to compromise, his commitment to the defense readiness of the free nations of Europe in times of threat."

"We're mourning Helmut Schmidt, and are proud that he was one of us. His judgment and his advice will be missed," said German Vice Chancellor Sigmar Gabriel.

Known as "an old friend of the Chinese people," Schmidt was also a pioneer and promoter of Sino-German relations. "I am a friend of China and follow the development of China with great attention," he said once in an interview with Xinhua.

Since his first visit to China in 1975, he visited China more than 10 times.

Schmidt had kept an eye on China's development in recent decades in all respects, and shared his views on the current and future development of China in several books. Endit