Volker Beck: Germany and Israel – Truth and Promises | Jerusalem Center For Public Affairs

Political relations between the Jewish State of Israel and the Federal Republic of Germany will always have aspects that transcend normal foreign relationships.
The Federal Republic of Germany is identical with the “Deutsche Reich” of the past as a subject of international law. This is the legal standpoint, as well, of the Federal Constitutional Court1 of the German Federal Government.2 It has legal and political consequences. As former German President Joachim Gauck said: “One thing is absolutely clear: our normal relations are to remain forever special. Israel and Germany are inextricably linked by the memory of the Shoah. We Germans are aware of our moral obligation to the Jewish people and the State of Israel, and we will not let this awareness fade.”3