On Monday, the presidents of Israel and Germany celebrated 60 years of diplomatic relations, praising the strong ties between their nations while also recognizing disagreements regarding the war in Gaza.
President Isaac Herzog was visiting Berlin before he and the German head of state, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, were due to tour Israel on Tuesday and Wednesday along with their wives, News.Az reports citing foreign media.
Steinmeier, receiving Herzog with full honours at Bellevue Palace, said that the establishment of relations in 1965 was “a gift that we Germans could not have expected after the horrors of the Second World War.” Standing alongside him at a joint press conference, Herzog said that the “process of dialogue and reconciliation” between the two nations over the past six decades was “a source of hope.”
Herzog praised Germany’s contribution to Israel’s security and prosperity and its steadfast backing after the Hamas attack in Israel of October 7, 2023, a stance which he said had demonstrated “moral clarity.” Steinmeier stressed that Israel must “defend itself against Islamist terrorism” but also said he feared that “the suffering experienced by the people in Gaza is deepening the divide, and that worries me, like many others.”
He added that “everything must be done to prevent an even greater humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza.”
Later on Monday, the two heads of state were meeting participants in bilateral youth exchanges and visiting a memorial at a Berlin railway station from which the Nazis sent trains to concentration camps. The two presidents were on Tuesday to embark on their unprecedented joint tour of Israel to highlight a friendship that a grateful Berlin often labels “a miracle,” and meet young people, politicians and kibbutz resident.
While Berlin, now led by conservative Chancellor Friedrich Merz, says support for Israel remains a core principle, relations have come under strain in recent years, over the Gaza war and other issues. Israel’s devastating war in Gaza following the October 7 attack has sparked charges from many countries and rights groups that its response has been disproportionate.