German-Israeli relations: 'A permanent responsibility'

"The mass murder of Jews was instigated by Germany. It was planned and carried out by the Germans. Consequently, every German government bears permanent responsibility for the security of the State of Israel and the protection of Jewish life. We will never forget the millions of victims and their suffering."

These words were spoken by German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on March 2, 2022, on his first trip to Israel, after his visit to the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial in Jerusalem, reiterating Germany's fundamental solidarity with the state of Israel.

This relationship is special. It will always be marked by the Shoah, the mass murder of six million Jews by Nazi Germany. And yet the relationship has developed significantly since 1965, the year in which full diplomatic relations were established with West Germany.

'With the exception of Germany'

In the early years, every Israeli passport read, "This passport is valid for all countries — except Germany." The young State of Israel wanted to distance itself from the "country of the murderers." In 1997, Avi Primor, Israel's ambassador from 1993 to 1997 in the West German capital Bonn, even wrote a book with the title "...with the exception of Germany."

Fundamental to rapprochement was the "Luxembourg Agreement" reached in September 1952, signed by the Federal Republic of Germany, Israel, and the Jewish Claims Conference.

This deal regulated German reparation payments as well as the return of assets. The first German chancellor, Konrad Adenauer, pushed the agreement through West Germany's parliament, the Bundestag, against some votes from his own Christian Democratic Union parliamentary group. This made him the "face of rapprochement" for many Germany.

In Israel, David Ben-Gurion stands for the beginnings of reconciliation. Early on, the legendary first prime minister of Israel argued for the view of an "other" Germany. Ben-Gurion and Adenauer met only twice — in 1960 and 1966. And yet both statesmen seemed like distant friends.

In 1964, news of German arms deliveries to Israel emerged, making international headlines. And this was the final impetus for the establishment of full diplomatic relations in 1965, a step that many in the young Jewish state found difficult to accept. The arrival of the first German ambassador was marred by protests.

Willy Brandt was the first visitor

The relationship was slowly strengthened through joint commemoration events and visits to Israel by German government representatives. In June 1973, Willy Brandt became the first chancellor to travel to Israel for a five-day state visit. His successor, Helmut Schmidt , never traveled to Israel during his tenure, but Gerhard Schröder, chancellor from 1998 to 2005, traveled to Jerusalem for a two-day visit in 2000, stressing that he came "as a friend of Israel and as a friend of its people." Helmut Kohl visited the state of Israel twice during his 16 years as chancellor from 1982 to 1998.

Angela Merkel , chancellor from 2005 to 2021, visited Israel more often than all other chancellors combined: Eight times. Most recently in October 2021, just weeks before she stepped down as head of government.

In 1975, Yitzhak Rabin became the first Israeli head of government to visit West Germany, and he also traveled to West Berlin.

No head of government or minister of the socialist German Democratic Republic (GDR) ever visited Israel. The state of Israel and the GDR never had official diplomatic relations, largely because East Berlin supported the Palestinian Arab cause.

Since German reunification, German heads of government have always emphasized Israel's right to exist. In the face of Israel's settlement policy in the Palestinian territories, however, they repeatedly spoke out in favor of a two-state solution. Each new Israeli settlement triggers a reminder from the German government not to further strain the already tense situation.

One of the high points of relations between the two sides was certainly Merkel's appearance at the Knesset. In March 2008, she was the first foreign head of government ever to speak there — in German. "Every federal government and every chancellor before me were committed to Germany's special historical responsibility for Israel's security. This historical responsibility of Germany is part of my country's reason of state. That means Israel's security is never negotiable," she said. Incidentally, the Israeli opposition leader at the time was Benjamin Netanyahu — and he was critical of the German-language speech.

Israeli-German government consultations

When Chancellor Scholz visited Jerusalem in 2022, he brought an invitation to a round of German-Israeli government consultations in Berlin. That these have still not taken place is perhaps the clearest indication of a recent estrangement, despite all historical obligations.

In 2008, the first such government meeting was held in Jerusalem. Since then, until 2018, six more followed: Three of them in Berlin and three in Jerusalem. Now, in view of the new Israeli coalition government, many political observers find it hard to imagine a meeting including all cabinet members.

Scholz congratulated Prime Minister Netanyahu on his election victory in 2022 and again stressed the special and close friendship between the two countries. But the German government is critical of the inclusion of far-right parties and politicians in the new Israeli government, especially regarding the latter's judicial reform, the reintroduction of the death penalty, and the expansion of settlements in areas that the Palestinians claim for a future state.

Since February 2023, some German government representatives have been criticizing Israeli policy decisions. Initially, it was Justice Minister Marco Buschmann from the neoliberal Free Democrats (FDP) and Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock (Greens) who called on Israel to maintain an independent judiciary and the rule of law. And German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier also voiced a rare expression of concern about the Israeli government's "planned restructuring of the rule of law."

Finally, Chancellor Scholz expressed his views when he received Netanyahu at the chancellery in March. "As democratic value partners and close friends of Israel, we are following this debate very closely and — I will not conceal this — with great concern," the chancellor said at the joint press conference. Basic rights are "by their very nature minority rights," he said.

In Germany itself, antisemitism continues to be a problem and antisemitic attacks happen regularly. When Scholz visited Israel, the debacle of the Documenta in Kassel was still to unfold: One of the world's most important contemporary art exhibitions in 2022 included blatantly antisemitic depictions, triggering a major scandal that shook Germany's art world and society.

Nowadays, Israel's ambassador to Germany, Ron Prosor, speaks out frequently on the topic of antisemitism and does not hesitate to reprimand Germany much more openly over such developments than any of his predecessors ever did.

This article was originally written in German.

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