Gay German Foreign Minister Visits China with His Partner

by Juliet Blalack · 2010-02-05 06:44:00 UTC
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Political power couples are nothing new. From John and Jackie to Hillary and Bill, we usually know our leaders' spouses, and often consider them political figures in their own right.

So could German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle and his partner Michael Mronz become a political power couple? Might Mronz become a recognized face at political events? Will countries negotiating with Germany have to roll out the welcome mat not just for Westerwelle, but for his partner as well?

That seems to be happening already. Westerwelle and Mronz first came out five years ago when they went as a couple to German Chancellor Angela Merkel's 50th birthday party. Then on Westerwelle's recent diplomatic visits to China and Japan, Mronz came along. They even posed with Chinese Premier Wen Jiabo and Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi.

The results? It seemed like a successful visit, as Wu told the Xinhua News shortly afterwards, ""When looking forward, we are confident about the future of the bilateral ties [with Germany]."

Mronz, a marketing executive, said he would not be joining Westerwelle on all of his future trips. Apparently he had to pay for the trip out of pocket, which would probably not be the case had Mronz been Westerwelle's wife. (Although same-sex marriage is an option in Germany, so it might not be a case of discrimination against gay couples, but simply unmarried couples.)

Here's just hoping they'll go on enough trips together to be ambassadors of gay visibility (in addition to within Germany).

Photo credit: Ottmar H.

Juliet Blalack writes about LGBT rights, with a focus on international issues. She previously lived in Cairo, Egypt.
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