BERLIN (Sputnik) — The incumbent German President, Joachim Gauck, expressed condolences, and stressed that Scheel was "a politician who contributed to shaping the country's destiny for many years."
Scheel served as Federal Minister of Economic Cooperation and development from 1961 to 1966, and later, between 1969 and 1974, he was Foreign Minister and Vice Chancellor and was further appointed President of West Germany in 1974, remaining in office until 1979.