PM Benjamin Netanyahu and German Chancellor Angela Merkel during a joint press conference at the King David Hotel in Jerusalem, October 4, 2018. (Hadas Parush/Flash90)
The German foreign minister is scheduled to visit Israel this week in the run-up to Israel’s planned annexation of Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria on July 1.
By Benjamin Kerstein, The Algemeiner
In the event of a partial annexation of Judea and Samaria, Israel believes that Germany would serve a diplomatic “buffer,” moderating possible punitive measures from the European Union.
The Israeli news site N12 reported on Monday that while some EU countries might want to take a hard line against Israel if it went ahead with annexation, such imposing sanctions or recognizing a Palestinian state, Germany would likely not back such steps.
Moreover, the date set by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to begin discussions on annexation — July 1 — is also the day Germany will receive the EU presidency, putting it in a good position to oppose extreme measures against Israel.
One reason for the German foreign minister’s planned visit to Israel this week is believed to be in order to get a sense of “the lay of the land” on the annexation issue.
Although Germany may decide to be a “shock absorber” for Israel in the event of annexation, it is also reportedly deeply concerned about the effect of annexation on the stability of neighboring Jordan, where a majority of the population is of Palestinian descent.
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