Marking 25 years of German unity, president says refugee crisis even bigger challenge

German President Joachim Gauck makes a speech during a ceremony in the 'Alte Oper' in Frankfurt, Germany, October 3, 2015. Germany's political leaders celebrate the country's 25th anniversary since the reunification of East and West Germany. REUTERS/Ralph Orlowski

BERLIN (Reuters) - As Germany celebrated 25 years since reunification on Saturday, President Joachim Gauck said Europe's refugee crisis posed a greater challenge to the country than the welding together of western Germany and the former communist East.

Gauck, a former Lutheran pastor from East Germany who played a prominent role in the peaceful protests there that led to the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, said the two halves of the country had become one over the past quarter of a century.