Günther van Well

Günther van Well joined the Nazi Party in 1940 and served in the German military during the Second World War. Captured by British forces in 1945, he began studying economics and law at the camp university in Featherstone Park. After release, he continued at Bonn and entered the West German Foreign Office in 1952. ¹

His early assignments included the German observer mission to the United Nations, study at Harvard, and political work in Tokyo. In Bonn he became a specialist in German and Berlin affairs, helping implement the new Ostpolitik and West Germany’s admission to the United Nations. He advised Hans Dietrich Genscher on the European security conference and served as state secretary from 1977. ¹

After representing West Germany at the United Nations, van Well became ambassador in Washington in 1984. His work combined support for continued dialogue with the East and efforts to manage disagreements within the Atlantic alliance. Following the controversy over Kohl and Reagan’s 1985 visit to the military cemetery at Bitburg, he sought more dialogue with American Jewish organizations. In retirement, he worked with the German Council on Foreign Relations. ¹