German president Joachim Gauck will not seek second term

Germany’s head of state, 76-year-old president Joachim Gauck, has said he will not seek a second term in 2017 due to his age.

Mr Gauck told reporters at his office in Berlin he would complete his five-year term but did not feel he was up to another because “the years between 77 and 82 are different than those that I’m in right now”.

“Until the end of my term, I will seriously and happily fulfill my duties,” he said.

Germany’s president performs a largely ceremonial role that has little executive power, but is considered an important moral authority.

A year ago, Mr Gauck labelled the killings of Armenians by Ottoman Turks a century ago as “genocide” in a speech supported by the German government, marking a shift in the country’s stance after officials previously avoided the term. His words were then echoed last week in a resolution passed by Germany’s parliament.

Mr Gauck, a former East German pro-democracy activist with no political affiliation, won wide backing from Germany’s mainstream parties when elected by lawmakers in 2012 and is very popular, with recent polls showing about 70% supporting him for a second term.

He said “it wasn’t an easy decision” to decide to step down after his term is up.