West Germany, Age 40, Hailed as ‘Friend and Partner’

President Richard von Weizsaecker declared Wednesday that although West Germany is not a great power, it should not be regarded as a “plaything” by other nations.

West Germany has been “a friend and partner and should be recognized” as such, Von Weizsaecker said in a speech commemorating his country’s 40th anniversary.

He called attention to West Germany’s accomplishments and said it has become self-confident, but he warned his countrymen against becoming self-satisfied.

“The economy is blooming, science has won back its prominence and education has become an example for the world,” he said. “Yet we have no grounds for self-satisfaction. We have not become angels under the Basic Law.”

This was a reference to the law enacted Dec. 23, 1949, that serves as West Germany’s constitution.

Von Weizsaecker, who was elected to a second term Tuesday, thanked the United States for helping rebuild the nation from the ruins of World War II, and said his country is a firm member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. His emphasis on West Germany’s ties to NATO, along with a suggestion that West Germany will be playing a stronger role in the European Community, was seen as an implied rebuke to critics.

Among these are people who believe that Bonn should accept the views of Washington and London on improving the alliance’s short-range nuclear missiles--a serious difference that threatens to disrupt a NATO summit conference next week--and others who fear that West Germany will become neutralist in an effort to achieve reunification with East Germany.

He praised Soviet President Mikhail S. Gorbachev for the “breathtaking” changes he is attempting to make in the Soviet Union.