In just three weeks, the German public has donated a record 400 million euros ($522 million) in aid for victims of the Asian tsunamis, making Germany on Monday the most generous country worldwide in helping the Indian Ocean region recover from the disaster.
"Four hundred million euros in private donations have been collected. I am happy that German people have shown themselves to be so generous, sensitive and willing to help," Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder told a news conference of foreign journalists.
"This shows that Germany's international responsibility is not only being taken seriously by the politicians, but also by civil society," he added.
The record vaults Germany, with an additional government pledge of 500 million euros in aid, to the top of the global list of those responding to last month's catastrophic earthquake and floods.
One of the biggest individual contributions came from Michael Schumacher, motor racing's Formula One world champion, who donated 7.5 million euros.