Former envoy sees signals of Germany's shifting policy on Israel

Questioning Germany's support of Israel should no longer be taboo considering human rights breaches in Gaza, former ambassadors say

Former German ambassador to the Middle East Martin Kobler says Germany is reassessing its unwavering support for Israel amid worsening conditions in Gaza. EPA

Germany has recently signalled an important policy shift by keeping all options on the table instead of opposing sanctions against Israel, a former German ambassador to the Middle East has told The National.

“We are seeing a growing change in language,” Martin Kobler said. “This is due, of course, to the aggravating situation which is just unbearable and unjustifiable.”

Germany’s approach has traditionally been shaped by the principle of Staatsrason, which translates as reason of state – the idea that unwavering support for Israel is a core German interest, rooted in the historical responsibility of the Holocaust. But recent developments suggest this stance is being reassessed in light of the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

In the past days, politicians from the centre-right Christian Democratic alliance (CDU/CSU), led by Chancellor Friedrich Merz, and the Social Democrats (SPD) have come out in support of measures such as a partial weapons embargo, or suspending Israel from the flagship EU-funded research programme, Horizon Europe. In May, Germany's anti-Semitism co-ordinator Felix Klein said Staatsrason did not “justify everything”.

“The government is keeping options open,” Mr Kobler said. A former ambassador to Pakistan (2017-2019), Egypt (2003-2006) and Iraq (2006-2007), Mr Kobler is part of a group of retired senior diplomats that has published op-eds urging Germany to support proposals such as those recently put forward by the European Commission to partially suspend Israel from the Horizon Europe research programme.

Reports also indicate that 130 German diplomats will meet Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul after calling internally for a tougher stance on Israel.

Politicians from the centre-right Christian Democratic alliance, led by chancellor Friedrich Merz, have said they are open to sanctioning Israel. Reuters

Applying pressure to Israel because it is committing an injustice should not be taboo, Mr Kobler and 12 other ex-ambassadors wrote in a public appeal published on July 23.

“We are for the security of Israel due to our history in Germany ... but what is happening today contravenes international law. That is also true of Hamas' actions,” Mr Kobler said.

Mr Kobler, who was also Germany's representative to the Palestinian territories in Jericho (1994-1997), highlighted the need for a balanced approach that upholds human rights while maintaining dialogue with Israel.

He echoed humanitarian groups' criticism of air drops to deliver aid, which are inefficient compared to trucks. "This is about being pro-human rights, pro-human dignity, pro-rules based international order - not pro-Israel or pro-Palestine," he said. "Israel is on the way to a pariah state with what it's doing. This is not good for the security of Israel."

The argument that protecting Palestinian rights is good for Israel's security was also put forward by French President Emmanuel Macron when he recently made the case for recognising a Palestinian state. He has since been joined by the UK and Canada. It is a position, however, that is rejected by Israeli leaders, who are now considering a military occupation in Gaza.

Shift in EU's position?

Germany's position has been closely scrutinised because it could significantly shift discussions at European Union level to sanction Israel. In June, an internal review by the European External Action Service found that Israel had breached a human rights clause enshrined in the EU-Israel Association Agreement, which governs relations between the two parties.

Yet discussions are moving too slowly, according to many countries. As a result, a flurry of national decisions have been taken. On Wednesday, Slovenia became the second EU state that said it would ban all imports from Palestinian occupied territories, a measure requested by the International Court of Justice last year. Alongside Slovenia, the Netherlands has banned two extremist Israeli cabinet members from its territory.

An Israeli armoured vehicle moves near the border of the Gaza Strip in southern Israel. AP

Germany, which is Israel's second-largest weapons exporter, has so far tried to engage with Israel in the hope that it would reverse course. A Foreign Office official told The National that Germany was examining the European Commission's proposal and “would participate constructively in the discussions in Brussels”.

On the plane back from his visit to Israel last week, Mr Wadephul made comments that stuck to the traditional German line on Israel, though he did use unusually strong language when he branded extremist Israeli settlers as “terrorists”, Mr Kobler said. Mr Wadephul also spoke at length about the role of the UN, apparently inspired by a French-Saudi two-state solution conference in New York last month.

Negotiated solution

Yet Germany has resisted France's calls to recognise Palestine together in September, in an effort to relaunch the peace process. Berlin's long-standing position has been that recognition must come at the end of a negotiated solution.

“It's high time to change Germany's position,” Mr Kobler said, arguing that dialogue with Israel has failed. “Did it prevent one settlement? Did it prevent settler violence? Did it prevent the way that the government is going towards annexation [in Gaza]?”

If adopted, the Commission's proposal would represent the first retaliatory sanction against Israel taken at EU level. Many countries, including the Netherlands, have been less ambiguous than Germany and said they would back it.

France, too, would support it, a French diplomat told The National, if Israel does not satisfy demands expressed by Paris in the past months. They include Israel suspending the work of the controversial Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, resuming tax transfers to the Palestinian Authority, and stopping the E1 settlement project in the West Bank.

It remains to be seen how Mr Merz reacts in the coming weeks. Polls show that Germans have an increasingly negative perception of Israel. Speaking this week, CDU foreign policy expert Norbert Rottgen said: “If Israel's policy doesn't change very quickly, Germany would also be forced to take concrete measures together with our partners.”

Siemtje Moeller, the SPD's deputy leader, returned from the trip to Israel with Mr Wadephul to Israel saying she was “unconvinced” by Israeli claims that starvation in the strip was Hamas' fault.

In a letter to SPD lawmakers sent on Monday and viewed by The National, Ms Moeller wrote that the Israeli government would not budge without pressure. “If such concrete improvements fail to materialise in the near future, there must be consequences,” she warned.