Tributes by world leaders on the death of Ronald Reagan

These are some of the tributes by world leaders on the death of Ronald Reagan. Many world leaders lauded Ronald Reagan, 40th president of the United States, for how he contributed greatly to the end of the Cold War. Others admired him for his help in restoring America's pride.

United States

News of Reagan's death put the ongoing presidential election on hold because it was considered disrespectful to have campaigns during a time of mourning.

Presidents

• George W. Bush was in Paris when he learned of the former president's death. He said in a televised statement: "This is a sad hour in the life of America...Ronald Reagan won America's respect with his greatness, and won its love with his goodness...he leaves behind a nation he restored and a world he helped save...because of his leadership, the world laid to rest an era of fear and tyranny." [1] [2]

• Former presidents:
  • Gerald Ford recalled Reagan as "an excellent leader of our nation during challenging times at home and abroad."
  • Jimmy Carter, who lost his 1980 re-election bid to Reagan: "President Reagan was a formidable political campaigner, who provided...unshakeable beliefs and was able to express them effectively, both in America and abroad."
  • George H.W. Bush, who served as vice-president under Reagan: "History will give Reagan great credit for standing for principles."
  • Bill Clinton: "He believed that freedom was a universal value...that people everywhere wished to be free, and...the Cold War would end."

Congress

Members of Congress paid tribute in different ways from the moment of the passing through the funeral.

Around the World

The death of the former president--any American president--bares great importance and put differences aside, not just at home, but also overseas, since the president of the United States usually has a great deal of influence overseas, as well as within the US.

Asia-Pacific

Because of the time difference, news of Reagan's death reached Asia as people there were waking up on June 6.

• Australian Prime Minister John Howard, in a doorstep interview: "Ronald Reagan, in my view, was the greatest of post-World War II American presidents. More than anybody else, he followed the policies that led to the collapse of the Soviet Union, the end of the Cold War, and the final victory of a more free-market approach to the management of economies over the centrally planned approach of the old eastern states...His greatest legacy will be the end of Soviet communism." [3]
• Indian Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh paid tribute in the book of condolences at the U.S. Embassy in New Delhi. This was the very first time an Indian prime minister has paid their respects to an American president this way.
• Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi: "During the arduous period of the Cold War, President Reagan showed great leadership and contributed tremendously to the advancement of democracy and free-market economy. In addition, President Reagan always placed a top priority on the maintenance of a sound Japan-U.S. alliance."[4] While at the G-8 Summit, he began his final news conference this way: "First of all, I should like to express from the very bottom of my heart condolences for the passing of President Ronald Reagan who was deeply respected by the people of the United Sates and who left many important achievements." [5].
• Former Japanese Prime Minister Yasuhiro Nakasone: "He was a great president who guided the Cold War toward a victory for freedom against communism...He would use his skillful humor and leadership to steer them to success."

Canada

News of Reagan's death forced Prime Minister Paul Martin and other Canadian leaders to put their election campaigns on hold.

• Former Prime Minister Brian Mulroney led the Canadian tributes. He said in a news conference: "Ronald Reagan was a transformational president who made an enormous difference in our lives by leading the West to victory in the Cold War and allowing free people to watch the disintegration of the Soviet Union." This marked only the second time that the prime minister didn't lead the Canadian tributes on the passing of an American president. The other time was for Lyndon Johnson in 1973, when Martin's father, Paul Martin Sr., then Senate government leader, led the Canadian tributes, not Pierre Trudeau, having served as external affairs minister under Trudeau's predecessor, Lester Pearson, prime minister when LBJ was president. Trudeau wouldn't pay tribute until the following day when he broke the news to Canada's House of Commons.
• Prime Minister Martin's office put out a statement, saying: "President Reagan's leadership served to define an era of sweeping geo-political change...He helped lay the foundations for the end of the Cold War...His wit, warmth and unique capacity to communicate helped to make him one of the most influential figures in the second half of the 20th century." [6] The next day, while in Normandy to mark the 60th anniversary of D-Day, he told reporters: "There's no doubt that the United States would be a very different country if it hadn't been for Ronald Reagan. It may well be that the Cold War would have been very different if it hadn't been for Ronald Reagan."
• Opposition Leader Stephen Harper: "President Reagan was the Churchill of his era. His commitment to the principles of freedom and democracy and his boundless optimism for humanity will remain an inspiration for us all."
• NDP Leader Jack Layton: "It's always sad to lose someone who has led a nation and we want to express our best wishes and sincere condolences."
• The two surviving sons of the late former Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau, Sacha and Justin, paid tribute on the CBC during the network's coverage of the 60th anniversary of D-Day, as they both helped the network's chief correspondent, Peter Mansbridge, in the commentary, recalling that Reagan was in Normandy for the 40th anniversary, because their father was there then when prime minister.

Europe

Most of Europe learned of Reagan's death shortly before midnight. However, most of Europe's leaders didn't comment until the following day.

• The office of French President Jacques Chirac released a statement saying: "He salutes the memory of a great man of state who, through the force of his convictions and his commitment in favor of democracy, will leave a profound mark on history."

• German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder called Reagan a leader who "will always be revered" in Germany. He went on: "His commitment to overcoming the East-West conflict and his vision of a free and united Europe helped pave the way for those developments that ultimately enabled Germany also to regain its unity."

• Former Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán told the Associated Press that Reagan was instrumental in ending Soviet repression and bringing democracy to the countries hidden for 40 years behind the Iron Curtain. "Hungary and Europe do not forget Ronald Reagan's help and his support for the former Communist countries."

• Irish Prime Minister Bertie Ahern called Reagan "a determined opponent of communism and he played an important role in bringing an end to communism and to the artificial division of Europe imposed after the Second World War." As president of the European Union, he said that "this process culminated in the accession of 10 new member-states to the European Union at the beginning of May this year." He also said that the news brought back memories of Reagan's visit to Ballyporeen, in County Tipperary, where his forebears came from, in 1984, "an occasion still remembered with great fondness by many" in Ireland.
• The presence of President Mary McAleese at the funeral had quite a meaning because Ireland was the land of Reagan's forebears.

Latvian President Vaira Vīķe-Freiberga: "President Ronald Reagan will be remembered in the hearts of all Latvians as a fighter for freedom, liberty, and justice worldwide."

• In the Netherlands, the news brought back memories for Queen Beatrix when she was in Normandy to mark the 60th anniversary of D-Day, because she was there with Reagan for the 40th anniversary.

• Former Polish President Lech Wałęsa called Reagan a "modest" person whose opposition to communism was firmly rooted in a deeper hatred for inequity. "When he saw injustice, he wanted to do away with it. He saw communism, and he wanted to put an end to it."

• At the Vatican, Pope John Paul II learned of Reagan’s death with "sadness" during a trip to Switzerland and immediately prayed for the "eternal rest of his soul," Vatican spokesman Joaquin Navarro-Valls said. The pope, a native of Poland, also recalled Reagan’s contribution to "historical events that changed the lives of millions of people, mainly Europeans."

Russia

• Former Soviet Leader Mikhail Gorbachev: "I take the death of Ronald Reagan very hard. He was a man whom fate set by me in perhaps the most difficult years at the end of the 20th century. He has already entered history as a man who was instrumental in bringing about the end of the Cold War.... It was his goal and his dream to end his term and enter history as a peacemaker."
• Former Foreign Ministry spokesman Gennady Gerasimov: "Reagan bolstered the U.S. military might to ruin the Soviet economy, and he achieved his goal."

United Kingdom

• A spokesperson at Buckingham Palace said that Queen Elizabeth II was "saddened by the news." Because she and her husband, Prince Philip, were in Normandy the following day, the memories of being there for the 40th anniversary came back.
• Former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher told the British news agency, Press Association (PA): "He will be missed not only by those who knew him and not only by the nation that he served so proudly and loved so deeply, but also by millions of men and women who live in freedom today because of the policies he pursued. Ronald Reagan had a higher claim than any other leader to have won the Cold War for liberty and he did it without a shot being fired." She also called him "a truly great American hero." This was the first time that the prime minister didn't lead the British government tributes on the passing of an American president.
• A spokesperson for then-Prime Minister, Tony Blair, said that he learned the news "with great sadness." He said in a letter to President Bush: "At home his vision and leadership restored national self-confidence and brought some significant changes to U.S. politics while abroad the negotiation of arms control agreements in his second term and his statesman-like pursuit of more stable relations with the Soviet Union helped bring about the end of the Cold War." In a letter to Nancy Reagan, he called Reagan "a good friend of Britain," understanding his relationship with Thatcher.
• Opposition Leader Michael Howard told PA: "This is an enormously sad day. President Reagan was one of the towering figures of our time, and the man who, with Margaret Thatcher, won the Cold War for the West...We, in Great Britain, as in so many other places around the world, owe him an everlasting debt."

Latin America

• Mexican President Vincente Fox: "President Reagan, in his long and fruitful life, was witness to...facing important challenges, including the end of the Cold War."

Tributes on the day of the funeral

United States

In the United States, many governors asked citizens in their states to observe a moment of silence at the start of the funeral, and/or declared the federal day of mourning a "day of remembrance." Houses of worship heeded a request from Nancy Reagan to toll their bells 40 times at the end of the funeral service. All U.S. Army stations throughout the world fired a 21-gun salute at noon local time and a 50-gun salute at sunset. Many Americans watched the funeral either on television or on the Internet.

Overseas

In some countries overseas, U.S. ambassadors appeared on radio and television and gave interviews, like Paul Cellucci in Canada. Commentators began their interviews with U.S. ambassadors with messages of condolences, as they noted America's day of mourning. [7]

Many overseas watched the funeral also, tuning either to 24-hour news networks or the Internet. Ronan Tynan's web site reported that the funeral drew over 35 million television viewers, both home and abroad.

Some world leaders, including Martin [8] and Schröder, ordered flags throughout their countries flown at half-staff to mark the funeral.

External Links

• Ronald Reagan-A tribute
• CNN Coverage of the passing of Ronald Reagan