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Are German-Israeli relations wavering?

March 3, 2014 at 11:40 am

This week, the German Chancellor Angela Merkel and nearly every minister in her new coalition landed in Israel for two days of joint cabinet consultations. These annual meetings highlight the strong bond between Israel and Germany, seven decades after the Holocaust, when Nazi Germany killed six million Jews.

“We have come here with almost the whole of our new government and we wanted to show you in this way that this is indeed a very strong friendship,” says Merkel. Indeed, this year’s meeting is the largest ever, with all but two of Germany’s cabinet attending. Merkel’s deputy, Sigmar Gabriel, an outspoken critic of Israel, is not participating, citing poor health.

The conference will see a number of agreements signed, including one that offers German consular services to Israeli travellers in countries that have no diplomatic relations with Israel.

During the trip, Merkel will also be presented with Israel’s highest civilian award by President Shimon Perez, for her “unwavering commitment to Israel’s security and the fight against anti-Semitism and racism”.

All of this seems designed to stress that the relationship between Israel and Germany – traditionally the Jewish state’s strongest ally in Europe – is all well and good.

However, the meeting comes against a backdrop of rising tension between Israel and the European Union – including Germany – over peace talks and settlement building. Before Merkel arrived in Israel on Monday, Germany’s Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, criticised the country’s settlement policy as “disruptive” to peace talks.

“We’ll discuss where things stand on the peace process and will try to find out what the obstacles are that prevent a solution,” he said. “The settlement policy clearly remains among those obstacles and this will of course be raised. We said clearly in the past that we don’t just consider decisions to expand settlements as unhelpful, but as disruptive to peace efforts.”

This is a view shared by many in the EU. There have recently been increased calls for a European boycott of Israel over its settlements. In Israel, there is anxiety that if the current round of peace talks fails, the EU could take punitive measures.

The German newspaper Der Spiegel recently reported that relations between Germany and Israel were at an all-time low, with Merkel and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu shouting at each other on the phone over policies towards Palestinians.

The newspaper said Berlin believes Netanyahu’s government is incapable and unwilling when it comes to pushing forward the peace process, while Israel feels abandoned by the Germans.

“The conflict has deteriorated to the point that some are questioning the special relationship status between the two countries,” the report said.

As Steinmeier made clear, the issue of settlements will be one of the things discussed at the joint cabinet meeting this week. Israel has downplayed its importance to the peace process, and says that the issue should be resolved through the peace talks rather than as a separate policy concern. Netanyahu said this week that the real barrier to peace was the Palestinian refusal to “accept finally a Jewish state, a nation state of the Jewish people.”

Merkel stressed that her country had stood “shoulder to shoulder” with Israel over the past five decades. She added that “part and parcel of the security of Israel is the two-state solution – a Jewish state of Israel and, alongside it, a Palestinian state”.

While Germany shows no sign of shifting its stance on settlements, it is clear that Merkel wants to defuse tensions and shore up the relationship with Israel. Similarly, Netanyahu told a German TV station that the meeting was “an exchange between very, very good friends”.

It is safe to assume that Israel will look to Germany for support in the event of any punitive EU measures such as a boycott. Despite heightened tensions, there is nothing to suggest that Germany would not comply.

The views expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Middle East Monitor.