Thousands mark 20th anniversary of Berlin Wall fall

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© RIA Novosti

Thousands of people gathered on Monday to mark the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall that led to Germany's unification.

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© RIA Novosti . Vladimir Rodionov

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev arrived in Berlin to join other leaders for the ceremony.

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© RIA Novosti . Владимир Родионов

French President Nicolas Sarkozy, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, German President Horst Koehler and Berlin Mayor Klaus Wowereit (from left to right).

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© RIA Novosti . Владимир Родионов

"Here in Berlin, all of us hope that the period of confrontation has gone. The transition to the new, multipolar world today is very important for the majority of countries," the Russian president said.

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"We are brothers, we are Berliners," said French President Nicolas Sarkozy.

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© RIA Novosti

Some 1,000 plastic foam dominoes were set up where the Berlin Wall once stood.

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© RIA Novosti . Igor Zarembo

The 2.3-meter high blocks, stretching for 1.5 km near the Brandenburg Gate and the German parliament, were painted by schoolchildren

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© RIA Novosti . Igor Zarembo

The dominoes fell one by one as a metaphor for the collapse of communism in eastern Europe.