Responses from the parties
Many Jews regard Israel as their spiritual home. The special connection between Germany and the democratic, Jewish state of Israel is rooted in history; today, however, it is shaped essentially by the community of values shared by the two democracies and by the similar social, economic and security-policy questions facing both countries.
In the peace process we expect Germany to stand by Israel in solidarity, and to understand that meeting the Palestinian desire for self-determination must not lead to further threats to Israel’s security. Alongside the radical Islamist groups, Iran is the greatest threat to Israel and to the free world; it must be met with firmness rather than appeasement.
We acknowledge Germany’s special responsibility towards Israel as a Jewish, democratic state. Israel’s right to exist and its security are not negotiable for us. Germany and Europe have a strong interest in peace and stability in the Middle East. We therefore advocate a two-state solution: with Israel within permanently secure borders and a viable Palestinian state. We are helping to create the conditions required for this. That also includes voicing necessary criticism. We want to intensify exchanges between German and Israeli young people.
In view of Germany’s special responsibility for Israel’s security, and equally in view of the growing instability in the region, Germany must continue to give its full support, together with its European partners, to initiatives for reviving the Middle East peace process. The peace process between Israelis and Palestinians has run into troubled waters. The forces on both sides that have an interest in a process of reconciliation are in danger of being pushed aside. Even in the currently extremely tense situation, we expect the parties involved to do everything they can to de-escalate matters. We are firmly convinced that a comprehensive peace settlement in the Middle East can be achieved only on the basis of the Oslo agreements. As we have also laid down in our statement of principles, we are committed to the creation of two sovereign and viable states within the framework of a negotiated solution. Unilateral steps – from whichever side – that stand in the way of a definitive peace settlement must be brought to an end.
DIE LINKE sees Germany as bearing a special responsibility towards Israel. We are convinced that Israel’s security can be achieved in the long term only through a peace settlement with the Palestinian side. The aim of such a settlement is a viable Palestinian state within borders that are binding under international law. We note with great regret that, for domestic political reasons, key actors on both sides show no sign of any interest in such a two-state solution. Some states in the region are not contributing to a peace settlement but, out of tactical calculations of power, are helping to escalate matters further. For us, the only way out lies in strengthening the forces oriented towards peace on all sides.
The special historical, cultural, economic and civil-society connection between Germany and Israel is a cornerstone of German foreign policy. We acknowledge Germany’s special responsibility towards the State of Israel, towards its right to exist and towards its right to live in security and within secure borders. We want to cultivate and deepen the many forms of German-Israeli exchange. At the same time we are committed to the right of Palestinians to live in self-determination, peace and security, free from occupation and with their human rights respected, in a state of their own. We are convinced that Israel’s lasting continued existence as a democratic state can be guaranteed only through the creation of a sovereign, viable and democratic State of Palestine on the basis of the 1967 borders. We reject any strategies on either side that breach international law or rely on violence and confrontation. We criticise the continued creation of facts on the ground that stand in the way of achieving a stable two-state arrangement.
As regards a solution to the Israeli-Arab conflict, the AfD today takes the view that only those involved on the ground can find a solution that works for them, bilaterally and without preconditions, and then implement it, if necessary with outside help. As outsiders, we do not presume to be able to assess possible solutions better than those involved, who ultimately have to bear the consequences alone. As a precondition for any peaceful solution, however, it is imperative that terror and violence be renounced immediately and unconditionally, so that in the longer term people in the region may live in peace, security and jointly created prosperity. This requires further democratic development of society under the rule of law, with the aim that human rights – and in particular freedom of opinion, of the press and of religion – be respected by all in the region. Corruption must be ostracised everywhere. These are the preconditions for Jews and Arabs to be able to live together in peaceful coexistence, much as almost two million Muslim Arabs already live in the State of Israel with extensive civil rights and unrestricted religious rights. As long as the majority of Palestinian Arabs continue to reject Israel’s existence, however, an aim of this kind remains a distant prospect, for as long as antisemitic hatred of Jews and of Israel persists in Palestinian society it is scarcely conceivable in practice.
We Free Democrats are committed to continuing Germany’s engagement in the Middle East peace process undiminished. The basis of our policy and of our raison d’état remains our commitment to Israel’s right to exist. In this we advocate a negotiated two-state model with fixed borders, in which Israel and an independent Palestinian state can live side by side in security and peace. In doing so we expressly wish to contribute the good experiences gained in the European process of peace and unification.