German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier arrived in Israel on Sunday evening 11 Shevat 5774. While German has been a staunch ally of Israel, the senior official’s visit comes on the heels of a waning support for Israel among citizens of that county. This is evident among some of Israel’s strongest supporters, including Chancellor Angela Merkel. According to a Maariv analysis, Merkel is now looking to establish “normalized relations with Israel”, meaning regular diplomatic relations with the Jewish state, relations void of Germany’s past and the ongoing effort to make amends, relations that will reflect the true interests of Germany in 2014. A growing number of residents of Germany seem to be shifting to the EU’s anti-Israel trend.
There is much significance to Germany’s slow but steady shift, for without Berlin’s staunch backing for Jerusalem, the Jewish nation is all but out in the cold among European Union nations.
One recent example was in September 2012, when Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman turned to his German counterpart, Guido Westerwelle, asking him to lead the opposition to the PA (Palestinian Authority) bid seeking membership in the United Nations. Israel was counting on Berlin to stand firm with Israel against the PA, but at the last moment, Merkel decided not to oppose the PA bid, opting to abstain. This was the result of Berlin’s failure in efforts to bring additional EU nations on board, to side with Israel. Israel was furious, but more importantly, it marked another shift in Germany’s former unquestionable pro-Israel position.
That vote was followed by an exchange of harsh words between Israel’s National Security Advisor Yaakov Amidror and senior aides to the chancellor. For Israel, Merkel was a last hope and her unilateral decision represented a betrayal of a staunch ally.
Amidror’s replacement, National Security Advisor Yossi Cohen has held meetings with senior aides and reports signal his tone was an apologetic one as he tried to mend fences between Jerusalem and Berlin. Some feel that despite stating publically he is now a supporter of the two-state solution, Merkel does not believe Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu is committed to the concept in light of his announcements promising additional housing construction in what the international community views as “Israeli occupied areas”.
Merkel is quick to add that her nation will always stand firmly behind Israel and the Jewish state’s future security but it appears the days of a blank check for support are gone. While Berlin continues to do just that, the level of support is not what it used to be amid new realities in the international community, particularly with growing calls for EU boycotts against Israel and “settlement goods”.
German does however remain the supplier of Israel Naval Dolphin submarines, with five already delivered and the six in the construction process.
(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
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One Response
Support for Israel in Europe was largely as a result of the holocaust (as in “see I support Israel, doesn’t that prove I’m not a Nazi”). Anyone who remembers World War II is well past retirement age (in the US, ask who remembers when blacks were banned from most universities and most employment and a white could attack black without fear of arrest).