Gift of Berlin Wall is 'proof that nothing can be built through hate and violence', says Romanian mayor

A section of the Berlin Wall has been gifted to the Romanian capital Bucharest.

The section of wall will be put on display in Bucharest as a reminder of the "importance of democracy". Bucharest mayor Dan Nicusor said the fall of the wall also marked the beginning of Romania's move into democracy.

The wall fell on November 9, 1989, ending decades of Communist rule. Romania was also a Communist country, under the rule of dictator Nicolae Ceausescu, who was killed in a bloody uprising on Christmas Day in the same year.

The fall of the Berlin Wall paved the way for other countries in eastern Europe to become democracies.

Bucharest mayor Dan Nicusor said the wall was the most important symbol of eastern Europe's Communist past.

Mr Nicusor said: “The Berlin Wall is perhaps the most powerful physical image of what communism meant, and in these complicated times when the danger of extremism threatens Europe once again, I believe that it is of the utmost importance to understand history.

“The fall of the wall represented a step forward for peace, and for Romania it marked the beginning of its transformation into a democratic and free state.”

Mr Nicusor added: “I would be very happy for young people to come in large numbers to look at this section of the wall and understand that it is proof that nothing can be built through hate, violence, fear or force.”

He said it had not yet been decided where in the city the wall would be displayed, but that he wanted as many people as possible to be able to see it.