14 January 1987, 11:25 EST
The White House
Ronald Reagan could only stare incredulously at Yuri Dubinin,for nearly a year now the Soviet ambassador to the USA. “So you’re telling me that there’s now so much trouble in Berlin that they’re about to tear the Wall down? Krenz must be having kittens.”
“Mr.President,that is the truth. Turn on your CNN,and you will see.”
Reagan turned on the TV,allowing it its customary half minute to warm up. When it did warm up,to CBS,there was some reporter interviewing a West German official. He channel hopped to CNN,currently showing a live feed from a helicopter orbiting over Pankow. There are hundreds,no,thousands of protestors,swarming like ants about a police station,holding signs Reagan couldn’t see.
“Mr.Ambassador,what are they yelling?”
“Berlin wird frei sein! Reiss die Mauer ein! ‘Berlin will be free! Tear the Wall down!”
“Has your own government responded to this yet? I can hardly believe Mikhail Sergeyevitch would just let it slide.”
“An amusing idiom. But no instructions have been issued to any of our consulates,at least not when I last got off the phone.”
‘I’ll call him myself if I have to.”
“Couldn’t you let Secretary Shultz handle this?”
“You know George almost as well as me. He’d start out well,but he’d mangle things as time passed. I’ll wait till the weekend,see how this pans out.”
Dubinin left the room.
Sometimes,it seems like the Americans are like us. Many politicians back home also dither over their problems. Americans,Soviets,British,German,it’s almost all the same.
—————
By nightfall,the various groups of protestors had reached a consensus. The Wall needed to be demolished. A group of disgruntled Army tankers offered their services. So did the majority of the Corps of Sappers.
At about 9:00,the procedure began. Several warning klaxons were sounded on the West Berlin side,warning civilians to evacuate to a safe distance of about 2000 feet. Then plastic explosives were placed beneath all but two of the guard stations. The guards themselves were also evacuated.
At midnight,eight-hour timers were set. Throughout the night,a tension held in Berlin. USAF jets patrolled the airspace above the Wall. Checkpoint Charlie was abandoned at 3:50. The end was near.
At 8:10 am,with the morning fog having not yet been burnt off by the Sun,a boom rolled across the city of Berlin. Here’s how Gunther Saltzmann,an author living in West Berlin,recalled events in 2015:
I was in my apartment when the stroke fell. My brother,who had guarded and tended to the wires on our side of the wall,was back home,one of the last to evacuate the wall. He was asleep,but the explosion woke him up. He gave a start and almost reached for his rifle
My fiancée,Alicia,told me that it was like the Sun had exploded on the horizon. I heard it in my bedroom,trying to write out a scene for a short story I was writing at the time,a tale of Frankish life in the days of Charlemagne. It never got published.
When I finally looked out of our window,I saw smoke and steam rising into the sky. It was like the ascent of Jesus must’ve looked to his followers. Alicia turned on the TV,and tuned it to the BBC. Jon Snow was reporting live from London. ‘It’s happened. My God,it’s finally happened. The Wall is down. Germany may-will-be united once more. This is the best day of my life.’
Whatever happens,I know I will never forget January 15,1987.
———-
15 January 1987, 08:00 EST
“Three,two,one,you’re on the air,Mr.President.”
Reagan took a deep breath and launched into his speech. He’d had to think of his topic on the fly.
“My fellow Americans,seven hours ago,an event of great import to our times happened. Via a series of underground explosives,the Berlin Wall,that potent symbol of division between West and East,was destroyed. No longer is Berlin,that city of contention,divided. There is now no West or East Berlin. The city stands together once more. Somewhere up there,John F.Kennedy is smiling on this turn of events. I have little doubt that if he was still among us,he would be pleased.
But the Berlin Wall,divisive as it was,was only a physical wall. There are still many walls,political,economical,and moral,that stand between us and our fellow superpower. Bulgaria,Romania,the Baltic states,Ukraine,Kazakhstan,and the rest still remain under Moscow’s thumb,directly or indirectly. They deserve freedom of action, and a place of their own in the international spotlight. We welcome the day when they are once more free from Moscow’s shadow. There is one man who can deliver them that freedom.
General Secretary Gorbachev,if you seek peace and prosperity,for Russia and her bloc,if you seek the freedom and liberalization you say your country needs,if you seek a better tomorrow for our world,come here to Washington. Come to us,and help our nations negotiate a new peace,a peace to warm this Cold War. Mr.Gorbachev,when you can,please tear down your walls!”
