The tensions between these principles have long been managed through a common political horizon, notably the two-state solution, a framework that the events of October 7 profoundly shook. What has emerged in its place is a pattern of oscillation, selective emphasis and deferral of difficult decisions, visible through arms deliveries, international legal proceedings and responses to regional escalation.
German policy towards Israel has long been structured around two guiding principles enshrined in the post-war identity of the Federal Republic. On the one hand, there is a particular commitment to Israel, stemming from the Holocaust, often formulated in terms of Staatsräson: Israel’s security is part of Germany’s reason of state. As Angela Merkel (Christian Democratic Union of Germany, CDU) said in 2008: “Every federal government and every chancellor before me has been committed to Germany’s special historical responsibility for security of Israel. This historical responsibility is part of my country’s raison d’état. HAS”
This relationship also had a reflective dimension: Israel became not only an object of foreign policy, but also a point of reference for Germany’s understanding of itself on the political level. In 2018, the former president of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD), Martin Schulz, declared: “With the existence of Israel and the recognition of its security, our country symbolizes a definitive break with the crimes and the mindset of the criminals who have submerged our country and the world in poverty. (…) By protecting Israel, we protect ourselves from the demons of our own people’s past.”
On the other hand, German foreign policy is firmly anchored in universalist norms, above all international law and human rights, which are themselves centrally enshrined in the Grundgesetz (Basic Law). German governments have consistently emphasized that their policy towards Israel is part of this broader commitment. This also allowed the expression of criticism of Israeli policies, particularly on the question of settlements and the political rights of the Palestinians.
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