President Reuven Rivlin landed in Berlin this morning (Tuesday, 16 March 2021), and began his diplomatic visit to Europe at the invitation of the presidents of Germany, Austria and France. During his visit, the president will hold meetings on the dangers of Hezbollah’s rising power, the intensification of Iran’s nuclear project, and the International Criminal Court. The president is accompanied by IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Aviv Kochavi who will brief the European presidents on security matters.

 

The president began his visit with a working meeting with President of Germany Dr. Frank-Walter Steinmeier.

 

During their meeting, the president expressed his appreciation to his German counterpart for the special and personal friendship between them, and for his commitment to further deepening relations between the countries. The president stressed Israel’s appreciation for Germany’s commitment to Israel’s security, to regional stability and the important strategic relations between them.

 

Speaking about the decision of the International Criminal Court to open investigations against the State of Israel regarding alleged war crimes, the president emphasized that the State of Israel sees the chief prosecutor’s decision in a very poor light, and said that for us this is a scandalous decision. The president thanked his counterpart for Germany’s stance with Israel against the decision of the Court, saying: “The State of Israel is a strong, Jewish and democratic state which knows how to defend itself and how to investigate itself when required. We are proud of our soldiers, our sons and daughters, grandsons and granddaughters. They protect us from our enemies and we will protect them from this decision. The State of Israel will not accept claims against the implementation of her right and duty to protect her citizens.”

 

Speaking about Iran, the president said it was using “nuclear blackmail” to obtain relaxation of the economic sanctions. He added that Israel attaches great importance to setting out red lines for Iranian conduct that will prevent further development of its nuclear program.

 

The president also spoke about the Palestinian issue, saying that Palestinian attempts to ‘legalize’ the conflict would lead to further polarization between the sides and the continuation of the crisis. The president said that “We cannot expect that confidence-building measures and improvement in our relations when one side is advocating criminal investigations of the other side’s civilians in a foreign court.” He added that COVID-19 has proved that borders are artificial and that cooperation between Israel and the Palestinians is crucial since our lives are inextricably linked together.

 

During the meeting, IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Aviv Kochavi gave a briefing on a number of security issues, particularly Iran and Lebanon, and elaborated on the failings of the current agreement with Iran. He spoke about regional challenges emanating from Iran, from Syria to Yemen, how Lebanon and Hezbollah are ignoring UN Security Council Resolution 1701, and the implications of precision missiles trained on Israel.  

 

The Chief of Staff also raised the issue of Israeli soldiers missing in action and the implications of the recent decision by the ICC which represent a significant challenge to democratic states’ ability to engage terrorist forces that hide behind civilian populations.

 

During the meeting, the Chief of Staff said, “I can say with confidence that IDF officers and soldiers do everything, and have done everything over the years and in all operations, not to harm innocent civilians. I have seen it with my own eyes many times as a brigade and divisional commander, in the alleyways of Judea, Samaria and Gaza. When there was a suspicion that innocent civilians were harmed, we knew how to investigate our actions thoroughly and, when necessary, those responsible faced the law.”

 

“The fundamental difference between us and our enemies is that while we do everything we can to prevent harming innocent civilians, our enemies do everything they can to harm our civilians, who are entirely innocent. We are in a new era of warfare, which is highly complex, and the ICC must adapt itself to the new reality. Your soldiers could face the same problems in other parts of the world, and so your support now is very important for us.”

 

At the end of the meeting the two presidents gave joint statements to the press.

 

Speaking about rising Iranian influence in the region, the president said, “The friendship and cooperation between us cover an extremely wide range of issues. Germany today shows an extraordinary commitment to the security of the State of Israel and to maintaining regional stability in the Middle East and we appreciate it deeply. This is a time when there is a potential for a change in the balance of power in our region. The Abraham Accords with the United Arab Emirates and other Arab nations, opens a window of hope for moderate voices in the region. It is now that extremist forces, led by Iran, are threatening to undermine this stability. The international community must stand together, speaking out strongly and without compromise against Iran’s nuclear plan and its support for terrorist groups that threaten Israel and the stability of the region.

 

The president spoke about the misuse of the International Criminal Court, saying “We trust that our European friends will stand by us in the important fight on the misuse of the International Criminal Court against our soldiers and civilians.”

 

He also referred to the ceaseless efforts to bring back the Israeli prisoners and missing soldiers held by Hamas in Gaza and Germany’s role in these efforts, saying “I would like to thank Germany’s leaders for their efforts to bring back Israel’s missing soldiers and citizens, held by Hamas right now. We will continue everything we can to bring our boys home,” he said, expressing his hope that “the positive developments in the Middle East will be reflected in our relations with the Palestinians and will contribute to the restarting of political negotiations between us, and the abandonment of hatred and violence.”

 

At the end of his remarks, the president thanked his German counterpart for their many years of friendship, saying “My dear friend President Steinmeier, I would like to thank you not only for your invitation here today, but for the genuine friendship between us. It is a testament to the warm relations between our two peoples that have developed over the past years. During my time as President of the State of Israel I have met many Germans – leaders and statesmen, but also scientists, artists and businesspeople – who see the relationship between us as a partnership of fate. The German leaders I have met expressed an exceptional commitment to Israel’s national security, to the Jewish people, and to the other minorities who live among us. We must continue to deepen our cooperation both in remembering the past and in continuing to create the present and the future,” said the president at the end of his remarks.

 

President of Germany Dr. Frank-Walter Steinmeier: “My dear friend Ruvi. Visitors are a rare event here, so I am very happy about your visit. This is the first visit by a president to Germany this year. Our last meeting here in Berlin was a little over a year ago, before the virus closed everything down.

 

At that meeting, we commemorated the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz together in Jerusalem, Auschwitz and Berlin. For me, as the president of Germany, those were such moving moments that will always remain in my memory. During the last year, we have continued to draw lessons from the past, even when we have not met. In particular, we have spoken about fighting antisemitism, xenophobia and racism.

 

During our conversation today, we have shared our experiences from our own countries, about the course of the virus. I congratulated President Rivlin on Israel’s vaccination drive that has been seen here in Germany with great appreciation and respect, not only because of its speed but also because of the efficiency of the process. Others, ourselves included, can learn a great deal from it. We can be protected in the future if we slow down the spread of the disease, and so we will do everything we can to get vaccinated. We welcome your cooperation in Israel with your neighbors in the vaccination drive.

 

Since our last conversations, many things have changed. Israel has signed normalization agreements with many neighbors, and I see these agreements as nothing less than historic. The president and his delegation presented us with their concerns about the continued nuclear arming of Iran, as well as its missile program. The previous American administration’s policy did not, we believe, support positive developments and we hope that we can bring about change in the future with the new administration and our European neighbors.

 

We also spoke about the elections in the Palestinian Authority and the possibility of dialog between the sides. President Rivlin knows that our position is that the two-state solution will serve the interests of both sides and will allow them to live in peace and democracy.

 

We will be able to discuss the domestic situation in Israel over dinner as it finds itself in elections for the fourth time in under two years. The personal friendship between us that has developed over many years is very dear to me. It is not dependent on our terms in office or our official commitments. Even this year, despite the restrictions, we have maintained close contact through letters, phone calls and video calls, but we know that this is no substitute for meeting in person and so I am so happy that you came here, and I hope that we can fight the virus and meet again before your term ends.”