it did at the European Council meeting held on 24 April 1990 in Dublin. In acting in this way, and in taking note of the assurances given with regard to the lasting and fair nature of the arrangements made in the 'Two-plus-Four' Process, the Community remained true to the values for which it stands: peace, mutual understanding between peoples, and solidarity, especially with all Germans in the East and in the West. Moreover, I cannot help but think that throughout the dark years, the Community's very existence, and not just its material prosperity, always stood as a reference point and a beacon for the peoples living under the communist yoke.
Indeed, let me just remind you: the Community was moving in concert with these events. As early as July1989 - as Mr Dumas will remember, as he was one of the people involved - even before the fall of the Wall, the Commission had persuaded the G7 to adopt a plan to help the countries of Central and Eastern Europe. The spirit of openness and a favourable predisposition towards enlargement had already been formally confirmed. Nevertheless, after the fall of the Wall, the German question, it has to be said, was a major concern. What path would reunited Germany choose?
On 19 November 1989, on the initiative of Mr Mitterrand, an extraordinary European Council met to pave the way for regular consultations between the two Germanies and their partners. A long presentation by Chancellor Kohl summed up the situation which, of course, was still necessarily in flux.