Editing German reunification (section)

=== Cooperation ===
[[File:Flag of East Germany with cut out emblem.svg|alt=Flag of East Germany, with cut-out emblem.|thumb|219x219px|[[Flag of East Germany]] with cut-out [[National emblem of East Germany|emblem]], prominently visible during protests against the [[Communist Regime]]]]
[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 183-R0518-182, Erich Honecker.jpg|thumb|upright|The end of East Germany became clear after the resignation of [[Erich Honecker]]]]
[[File:BerlinWall-BrandenburgGate.jpg|thumb|upright|Berlin Wall at the [[Brandenburg Gate]] on 10 November 1989 showing the [[graffiti]] {{langx|de|Wie denn|label=none}} ("How now") over the sign warning the public that they are leaving West Berlin]]
[[File:Volkspolizei at the official opening of the Brandenburg Gate.jpg|thumb|right|Police officers of the East German [[Volkspolizei]] wait for the official opening of the [[Brandenburg Gate]] of the Berlin Wall on 22 December 1989.]]
[[File: RIAN archive 428452 Germany becomes one country.jpg|thumb|Berlin Wall, October 1990, saying "Thank you, [[Mikhail Gorbachev|Gorbi]]!"]]
On 28 November 1989—two weeks after the fall of the Berlin Wall—West German [[Chancellor of Germany|Chancellor]] [[Helmut Kohl]] announced a 10-point program calling for the two Germanies to expand their cooperation with a view toward eventual reunification.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Helmut Kohl's Ten-Point Plan for German Unity (November 28, 1989) |url=https://germanhistorydocs.ghi-dc.org/sub_document.cfm?document_id=223 |access-date=2022-03-05 |website=germanhistorydocs.ghi-dc.org |archive-date=20 November 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221120144721/https://germanhistorydocs.ghi-dc.org/sub_document.cfm?document_id=223 |url-status=live }}</ref>

Initially, no timetable was proposed. However, events rapidly came to a head in early 1990. First, in March, the [[Party of Democratic Socialism (Germany)|Party of Democratic Socialism]]—the former [[Socialist Unity Party of Germany]]—was heavily defeated in [[1990 East German general election|East Germany's first free elections]]. A grand coalition was formed under [[Lothar de Maizière]], leader of the [[Christian Democratic Union (East Germany)|East German wing]] of [[Cologne|Kohl]]'s [[Christian Democratic Union (Germany)|Christian Democratic Union]], on a platform of speedy reunification. Second, [[Economy of East Germany|East Germany's economy]] and infrastructure underwent a swift and near-total collapse. Although East Germany was long reckoned as having the most robust economy in the Soviet bloc, the removal of Communist hegemony revealed the ramshackle foundations of that system. The [[East German mark]] had been almost worthless outside East Germany for some time before the events of 1989–1990, and the collapse of the East German economy further magnified the problem.