• Dr. Géza Andreas von Geyr spoke about the security of Europe and European values at the current coronation banquet in an ambitious speech entitled "With security Europe!".
• The Aachen Coronation Banquet has traditionally taken place in October in the Coronation Hall of Aachen Town Hall for many years - in memory of the sumptuous banquet at the coronation of Charles V in 1520.
• The Coronation Banquet is not only known for its culinary delights in an extraordinary ambience, but also for its first-class entertainment program by prizewinners of the German Foundation for Musical Life.

Keynote speaker Dr. Géza Andreas von Geyr, Head of the Permanent Mission to NATO and Permanent Representative of Germany to the North Atlantic Council, focused on European security and European values in his address to around 200 guests at the 21st Aachen Coronation Banquet in the Coronation Hall of Aachen Town Hall.

The CV of the historian, who was born in Bavaria in 1962, makes exciting reading: he studied in Munich, spent time abroad in the USA and then joined the diplomatic service. After working in Morocco and Brussels as well as in the Foreign and Security Policy Department at the Federal Chancellery, he was appointed ambassador in Moscow. From 2019 to 2023, Dr. Géza Andreas von Geyr headed the German mission in Russia before moving to NATO in Brussels.

In his speech, von Geyr spanned the spectrum from Ukraine and Russia to the Middle East, China and the USA. He recalled the 75th anniversary of NATO this year and explained: "European integration has succeeded on the terrible ruins of the Second World War - precisely because the United States was prepared to integrate permanently for peace and freedom in and with Europe. The Atlantic Alliance has given security to the European integration process - it does so today and hopefully for a long time to come." He emphasized: "Peace and freedom are fragile, they need security."

European security interest

Géza Andreas von Geyr commented on the Ukraine conflict as follows: "Our position is clear: Ukraine can rely on its partners. We stand by their side with economic, political and strong military support. It is in our European security interests to ensure that wars of loot in the style of previous centuries never happen again."

Return to stability

According to von Geyr, the situation in the Middle East is also causing immense concern. The return to stability and security from terror are of paramount interest. But: "There are no quick and easy solutions in this troubled region. We have to show commitment and patience - security needs patience."

No going back to comfortable times

With a view to the American presidential elections, he said: "Whoever wins here, we Europeans will have to take on more of the common transatlantic defense burden on our European shoulders. There will be no going back to the comfortable times when the USA took on far more tasks for the security of our European continent. We Europeans have understood this. We are on the right track, as Europeans in NATO, as the EU - but we need to pick up the pace. We need to invest and develop together again."

Rarely were these frank words spoken at the coronation banquet in the Coronation Hall of Aachen Town Hall, which the Rathausverein developed in 2002 as a reminder of the sumptuous meal at the coronation of Charles V in 1520 together with the Hotel Quellenhof and the financial support of reliable sponsors. The idea: to enjoy culinary delights at a high level and support the Rathausverein Aachen at the same time. Thanks to this commitment and the willingness of the people of Aachen to donate, the Rathausverein has now raised around two million euros for the preservation and restoration of Aachen's town hall.

Culinary delights and first-class entertainment program

The 4-course menu for this year's coronation banquet once again came from the kitchen of Dorn Catering & Events. A classic menu with meat and fish as well as a vegetarian menu was served. As always, the coronation wine came from the Pro-Idee wine cellar. However, the coronation banquet is not only known for its culinary delights in an extraordinary ambience, but also for its first-class entertainment program. As usual, it was performed at the very highest level by prizewinners of the German Foundation for Musical Life - this year by Elias David Moncado (violin) and Simon Haje (piano), who placed Debussy at the center of their performances.