This was part of a two-day visit to Salzgitter by a delegation from the Thuringian twin town. During the ceremony in the council chamber, the two mayors and the two council chairmen gave welcoming speeches.

In his welcome address, Salzgitter's Lord Mayor Frank Klingebiel emphasized: "We are delighted that you have come to Salzgitter. The partnership between Gotha and Salzgitter is important to all of us and it has a very special history with the German-German division that still existed at the time." He gave a special welcome to his counterpart Knut Kreuch: "He is a driving force behind our town twinning and is always coming up with new ideas on how we can intensify our cooperation."

Michael Letter, Chairman of the Salzgitter City Council, praised the numerous contacts between the two cities: "In the 35 years of our town twinning, friendships and diverse contacts have developed between Gotha and Salzgitter. My and our thanks go to all the committed citizens who have allowed this partnership to grow and fill it with life today."

Looking back, his counterpart from Gotha, Martin Wolf, thanked Salzgitter for its help in establishing local self-government after the political change in 1989 and was pleased about the contacts between the two cities: "The cultural contacts between our cities are particularly close. Close ties have also developed between the fire departments, clubs and schools. We are continuing this multi-layered partnership with today's visit to Salzgitter."

Gotha's Lord Mayor Knut Kreuch found apt words for the purpose of town twinning: "Peace nourishes, discord consumes. That applies globally, but also in our country. We need discussions and exchange. And that is exactly what town twinning offers. Today is a moving moment for me to be here in our twin city of Salzgitter. In conclusion, Gotha's Lord Mayor invited a group of schoolchildren from Salzgitter to be the first to visit the new youth hostel in the center of Gotha, which is due to open next summer. Salzgitter's mayor responded to this suggestion by inviting pupils from Gotha to the city's youth and education camp on the island of Neuwerk.