page_title: History of East Germany
section_title: Two German states
hierarchical_section_title: History of East Germany / Foreign policy, 1967–1975 / Two German states
caption_attribution_description: العربية: التقط تييري نوير هذه الصورة عام 1986 في برلين كريوزبرغ. Deutsch: Dieses Bild wurde 1986 von Thierry Noir am Bethaniendamm in Berlin-Kreuzberg fotografiert. Man sieht eine Grenzstreife der DDR. English: This image of the Berlin Wall was taken in 1986 by Thierry Noir at Bethaniendamm in Berlin-Kreuzberg. Français&#160;: Cette photo a été prise en 1986 par Thierry Noir au Bethaniendamm à Berlin-Kreuzberg. Italiano: Questa foto è stata scattata nel 1986 da Thierry Noir a Bethaniendamm in Berlino-Kreuzberg. Magyar: A Berlini fal keleti oldalán egy NDK katonákból álló oszlop halad és összeszedi a Nyugat-Berliniek által a Falon átdobált szemetet. Polski: opis: To zdjęcie zostało zrobione w 1986 roku przez Thierry'ego Noir przy Bethaniendammie w Berlin-Kreuzbergu. For more translations [[#Assessment|see below]]
context_page_description: The German Democratic Republic, German: Deutsche Demokratische Republik, often known in English as East Germany, existed from 1949 to 1990. It covered the area of the present-day German states of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Brandenburg, Berlin, Sachsen, Sachsen-Anhalt, and Thüringen. This area was occupied by the Soviet Union at the end of World War II, with the remaining German territory to the west occupied by the British, American, and French armies. Following the economic and political unification of the three western occupation zones under a single administration and the establishment of the German Federal Republic in May 1949, the German Democratic Republic was founded on 7 October 1949 as a sovereign nation.
  East Germany's political and economic system reflected its status as a part of the Eastern Bloc of Soviet-allied Communist countries, with the nation ruled by the Socialist Unity Party of Germany and operating with a command economy for 41 years until 3 October 1990 when East and West Germany were unified with the former being absorbed into the latter's existing system of liberal democracy and a market economy.
context_section_description: From the mid-1970s, East Germany remained poised between East and West. The 1974 amendment to the Constitution deleted all references to the "German nation" and "German unity" and designated East Germany "a socialist nation-state of workers and peasants" and "an inseparable constituent part of the socialist community of states." However, the SED leadership had little success in inculcating East Germans with a sense of ideological identification with the Soviet Union. Honecker, conceding to public opinion, devised the formula "citizenship, GDR; nationality, German." In so doing, the SED first secretary acknowledged the persisting psychological and emotional attachment of East German citizens to German traditions and culture and, by implication, to their German neighbors in West Germany.
  Although Abgrenzung constituted the foundation of Honecker's policy, détente strengthened ties between the two German states. Between 5 and 7 million West Germans and West Berliners visited East Germany each year. Telephone and postal communications between the two countries were significantly improved. Personal ties between East German and West German families and friends were being restored, and East German citizens had more direct contact with West German politics and material affluence, particularly through radio and television. West Germany was East Germany's supplier of high-quality consumer goods, including luxury items, and the latter's citizens frequented both the Intershops, which sold goods for Western currency, and the Exquisit and Delikat shops, which sold imported goods for East German currency.
  As part of the general détente between East and West, East Germany participated in the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe in Europe and in July 1975 signed the Helsinki Final Act, which was to guarantee the regime's recognition of human rights. The Final Act's provision for freedom of movement elicited approximately 120,000 East German applications for permission to emigrate, but the applications were rejected.
caption: Inter-German Border Strip at the Berlin Wall
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