As people around the world celebrated the 25th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, President Barack Obama said in a tweet that he will “never forget” the scenes of people reuniting with their families and entering “the free world.”
“It was a reminder that walls of concrete and barbed wire are ultimately no match for the will of ordinary men and women who are determined to live free,” he said in the statement.
He also used the occasion to take a jab at Russian President Vladimir Putin, who he said has held back progress in Europe: “But as Russia’s actions against Ukraine remind us, we have more work to do to fully realize our shared vision of a Europe that is whole, free and at peace.”
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Write to Justin Worland at justin.worland@time.com