July 1988. An address given by Wörner in 1990 to the Bremer Tabak Collegium became a subject of a controversy when Vladimir Putin cited it in his 2007 speech at 43rd Munich Conference on Security Policy to claim that NATO made a promise not to expand eastward after the end of the Cold War. Wörner executed his duties as NATO Secretary General despite severe illness and until his death from colorectal cancer in 1994. He is buried at the cemetery of Hohenstaufen nearby Göppingen. Personal life In December 1972 Wörner married Anna-Maria Caesar. From 1982 until his death he was married with Elfie Wörner, née Reinsch (1941–2006). Medal Since 1996, the Ministry of Defense has awarded the Manfred Wörner Medal on an annual basis to honour public figures who have rendered "special meritorious service to peace and freedom in Europe". Since then it was given to: 1996 Richard Holbrooke, US diplomat and Special Envoy in Bosnia and Kosovo 1997 Ewald-Heinrich von Kleist-Schmenzin, publisher and initiator of the Munich Conference on Security Policy 1998 Dr. Gerd Wagner (postmortem), for the implementation of the Dayton Agreement 1999 Dr. Janusz Onyszkiewicz, Minister of Defense of Poland 2000 Elizabeth Pond, American Journalist 2001 Karsten Voigt, Coordinator at the German State Department for the German-American Cooperation 2002 Javier Solana, the EU's foreign policy chief and former Secretary General of NATO 2003 Prof. Dr. Catherine McArdle Kelleher, U.S. Naval War College and former Head of the Aspen Institute Berlin 2005 Hans Koschnick 2006 Christian Schwarz-Schilling 2007 Martti Ahtisaari 2009 Jörg Schönbohm 2011 Hans-Friedrich von Ploetz, German diplomat See also Manfred Wörner Seminar Manfred Wörner Foundation NATO Declassified - Manfred Wörner (biography) Honours The Manfred Wörner Seminar, a security-policy information seminar of the German Federal Ministry of Defense for young civilian executive personnel from Germany, the United States and other European nations, is named after Manfred Wörner to honour his merits on transatlantic dialogue and understanding. Wörner Gap on Livingston Island in the South Shetland Islands, Antarctica is named after Dr. Wörner in recognition of his contribution to European unification. References 1934 births 1994 deaths Politicians from Stuttgart Secretaries General of NATO Defence ministers of Germany Members of the Bundestag for Baden-Württemberg Members of the Bundestag 1987–1990 Members of the Bundestag 1983–1987 Members of the Bundestag 1980–1983 Members of the Bundestag 1976–1980 Members of the Bundestag 1972–1976 Members of the Bundestag 1969–1972 Members of the Bundestag 1965–1969