Sister cities of Bonn

Bonn (German pronunciation: [ˈbɔn]), officially the Federal City of Bonn, is a city on the banks of the Rhine River in the State of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The city is the second official residence of the President of Germany, the Chancellor of Germany, the Bundesrat (upper house), and the first official seat of six federal ministries and approximately 20 federal authorities. Bonn is located in the very south of the Rhine-Ruhr region, the largest metropolitan area of Germany. It is the seat of two major DAX-listed German corporations.

Founded in the first century BC as a Roman settlement, Bonn is one of Germany's oldest cities. From 1597 to 1794, Bonn was the capital of the Electorate of Cologne and residence of the Archbishops and Prince-electors of Cologne. It was the de facto capital of West Germany from 1949 to 1990 (Berlin was symbolically named the de jure capital in the West German Basic Law) and the official seat of government of united Germany from 1990 to 1999. In recognition of this, the former capital holds the one-of-a-kind title of Federal City (Bundesstadt).

Being a hub for international cooperation, the city currently hosts 18 United Nations institutions. Simultaneously, Bonn is establishing itself as a national and international centre of meetings, conventions and conferences, many of which are directly related to the work of the United Nations.

The city is home to the University of Bonn, one of Germany's most reputable institutions of higher learning. Bonn is the birthplace of Ludwig van Beethoven (born 1770).