For a long time, the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE) was considered a diplomatic battle of no significance. But in retrospect, it laid the foundation for the end of the Iron Curtain, and the fall of the Berlin Wall. The CSCE is an historic event whose significance was disputed at the time. Ultimately, it changed the world, laying the foundation for the end of the Iron Curtain, and initiating the fall of the Berlin Wall and subsequent collapse of the Soviet Union. Heads of state from 35 countries were present, including US President Gerald Ford, Soviet Party leader Leonid Brezhnev, Helmut Schmidt for the FRG, and Erich Honecker for the GDR.