Iranians burn an Israeli flag at Quds Day rally. (AP/Ebrahim Noroozi)
Germany’s vice chancellor said Iran must recognize Israel if it wants to maintain good economic relations with Berlin in the long term.
Iran must recognize Israel’s right to exist in order to have good economic relations with Germany, German Vice Chancellor Sigmar Gabriel said Sunday, at the start of a three-day visit to the Islamic Republic. Gabriel, who also serves as minister of economy, is the first high-ranking Western official to visit Iran since it reached a nuclear agreement with the P5+1 last week.
“You can’t have a good economic relationship with Germany in the long term if we don’t discuss such issues too and try to move them along,” Gabriel told a group of Iranian and German businessmen, Reuters reports. “Questioning this state’s [Israel’s] right to existence is something that we Germans cannot accept.”
Germany has traditionally been one of Israel’s staunchest supporters in Western Europe, notwithstanding the recent surge in anti-Semitism. However, Germany was also the top exporter to Iran until 2007, when it was superseded by China.
Gabriel is in Iran with a delegation of German business leaders in anticipation of loosening economic sanctions. He hailed the Iranian nuclear deal as having “laid the foundations for a normalization of economic relations with Iran,” although he emphasized that the “precondition for this is that the steps foreseen in the agreement are now implemented.”
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. (Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader via AP)
The P5+1, which includes Germany, frustrated Israel and the Arab Gulf states by focusing on Iran’s nuclear program while ignoring the destructive role Iran plays in the Middle East through its support for terrorism and the Assad regime as well as its refusal to recognize the State of Israel.
In fact, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei vowed to continue these policies in a televised address marking the end of Ramadan. “Whether this text [the nuclear deal] is approved or disapproved, we won’t give up supporting our friends in the region. The oppressed Palestinian nation, Yemen, Syria, Iraq, Bahrain, the honest mujahedeen of resistance in Lebanon and Palestine [i.e. Hezbollah and Hamas] will enjoy our constant support.”
By: Sara Abramowicz, United with Israel
Sign the Petition to Stop a Nuclear Iran
The US Congress must ensure that sanctions against Iran remain in force until the nuclear threat is completely eliminated.
I strongly oppose easing sanctions before the nuclear threat from Iran has been eliminated. Allowing Iran to enrich uranium without being subject to 'anytime, anywhere' inspections is extremely dangerous and unacceptable. Iran's nuclear program must be stopped.
See our Privacy Policy