
Masa jabatan 16 tahun Kohl adalah yang terlama dari Kanselir Jerman sejak Otto von Bismarck . Dia mengawasi akhir Perang Dingin dan secara luas dianggap sebagai dalang penyatuan kembali Jerman . Bersama dengan Presiden Perancis François Mitterrand , Kohl dianggap sebagai arsitek Perjanjian Maastricht , yang membentuk Uni Eropa (UE) dan mata uang euro. Dalam tahun-tahun berikutnya setelah kanselirasinya Kohl dikritik karena perannya dalam skandal sumbangan CDU yang juga menyebabkan pengunduran diri penggantinya Wolfgang Schäuble dan pemilihan mantan pemimpin Kohl Angela Merkel sebagai pemimpin partai.

Kohl's 16-year tenure was the longest of any German Chancellor since Otto von Bismarck. He oversaw the end of the Cold War and is widely regarded as the mastermind of German reunification. Together with French President François Mitterrand, Kohl is considered to be the architect of the Maastricht Treaty, which established the European Union (EU) and the euro currency.[1] In the immediate years after his chancellorship Kohl was criticized for his role in the CDU donations scandal which also led to the resignation of his successor Wolfgang Schäuble and the election of Kohl's former protegée Angela Merkel as party leader.
Kohl was described as "the greatest European leader of the second half of the 20th century" by U.S. Presidents George H. W. Bush[2] and Bill Clinton.[3] Kohl received the Charlemagne Prize in 1988 with François Mitterrand; in 1998 Kohl became the second person to be named Honorary Citizen of Europe by the European heads of state or government.