Tomorrow, Tuesday 10th October, a "topping out" ceremony will be held at the newly built American Embassy in Berlin. US Ambassador William Timken, together with various guests of honour, will celebrate the laying of the final beam at the top of the building.

The new embassy building, located directly on Pariser Platz behind the Brandenburger Tor, has been under construction since October 2004. It is due to open for business in the spring of 2008.

The end of the exterior construction work means that the facade on all sides of Pariser Platz is now complete and the area looks more like a city square than a building site.

Read more: New U.S. Embassy on Pariser Platz, and in German: Die letzte Lücke am Pariser Platz ist geschlossen