Overview

• The central ceremony in Saarbrücken features speeches by Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Bundesratspräsidentin Anke Rehlinger, with France’s Emmanuel Macron as guest.
• Merz has signaled a forward‑looking address to lift the national mood and build support for reforms, prompting talk of a new “Ruck” appeal, and he posted that “our diversity makes us strong.”
• Polling and data underscore divides, with 30% nationwide and 43% in the East saying more separates than unites, alongside a reported 17.4% full‑time wage gap between West and East.
• A large citizen festival with art and music accompanies the ceremonies, several hundred thousand visitors are expected, and a flight and drone ban is in effect over Saarbrücken.
• Angela Merkel criticized the guest lineup for lacking an East German or Eastern European speaker, and Merz is scheduled to join the candlelit “Deutschland singt & klingt” event in Halle this evening.