Berlin deepens military ties with Israel even as legal risks mount over Gaza
Elis Gjevori is a journalist based in Istanbul. He focuses on the Balkans, Turkey and the Middle East
Cross-posted from Middle East Eye
Photo: Government Press Office Israel
Germany approved a controversial $3.1bn weapons deal with Israel on Thursday which will see Tel Aviv supply Berlin with Arrow 3 missile defence systems, the Israeli defence ministry has announced.
It follows a similar $3.5bn agreement signed between the two countries two years ago, making the two contracts Israel’s largest arms sale to date, worth over $6.6bn.
The deal promises a major boost to Israel’s defence industry and comes as the country is facing pressure over its genocide in Gaza. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant are wanted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
In the summer, Germany’s Chancellor Friedrich Merz announced a partial arms embargo on Israel in response to Israel’s plan to fully occupy the besieged Gaza Strip. The move was reversed in November.
Germany supplies about 30 percent of Israel’s imported weapons, second only to the United States, which accounts for almost 60 percent of its defence imports.
There is an ongoing case initiated by South Africa in December 2023, accusing Israel of genocide before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) for its war on Gaza. The ICJ recognised a plausible risk of genocide in January 2024, triggering legal duties on states not to aid or abet Israel’s actions against Palestinians.
“The scale of reported harm [in Gaza], the legal warnings and the live ICJ case raise the risk level to a point where continued transfers and major deals become hard to square with Germany’s own stated standards,” Andreas Krieg, associate professor of security studies at King’s College London, told Middle East Eye.
“Berlin cannot present an expanded weapons package as business as usual and, at the same time, insist it applies strict tests designed to prevent arms being supplied where there is a clear risk of serious breaches of international humanitarian law.”
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said Germany’s approval of the deal “is a clear expression of the deep trust that Germany places in the State of Israel”.
The deal would also allow Israel to ramp up military production in the country, according to the Defense Ministry Director-General Major General Amir Baram, who described the contract as part of the “deepening strategic relations between Israel and Germany”.
That infusion of cash into Israel’s military complex will also have knock-on effects on the weaponry it makes and uses in Gaza and the occupied West Bank.
“The deal will strengthen Israel’s position in the world as a defence superpower, will expand and accelerate Arrow production for the [Israeli army] as well, and will channel billions into strengthening the defence industries,” said Baram.
Israel-Germany defence ties expanding
Germany’s defence procurement in Israel has expanded significantly over the past year and is now the most extensive ever. It includes a deal agreed in October with Eurospike, a subsidiary of Israeli defence firm Rafael operating in Europe, under which the German army will be supplied with Spike anti-tank missiles at a cost of about $2bn.
In August, Berlin selected Rafael’s Litening 5 targeting and guidance system for its Typhoon fighter jets in a deal worth more than $400m.
“Germany has made it clear to the international community it has little regard for international law when it comes to Israel,” warned Hebh Jamal, a Palestinian writer and journalist based in Germany.
Germany’s retort when it faces any criticism of Israel is to fall back on “Staatsrason”, or that Israel’s security is part of Germany’s “reasons of state”, which demands unconditional solidarity with Israel for crimes committed by Germany against the Jewish people.
“The reiteration of the German ‘Staatsrason’ confirms that the protection of a foreign state is more important for the German political establishment than their responsibility to the public and the ICC,” added Jamal.
Internal German politics
The flurry of deals between Germany and Israel also reflects Germany’s most significant rearmament plan since World War Two.
Chancellor Friedrich Merz, less than seven months after taking office, is facing mounting political pressure at home, as Germany accelerates military spending.
“As far as Israel and Germany are concerned, I think Chancellor Merz is involved in what Americans call a holding pattern, or even an uphill battle. He’s trying to be the one who stands with Israel to sort of make it seem normal and reasonable,” said Ori Golberg, an independent analyst and commentator, speaking to MEE from Israel.
On Wednesday, Germany approved almost $60 billion in military spending, with the country set to spend more than $580bn on defence between 2025 and 2029.
“Germany, under [Merz], is building a war machine and Israel stands ready to supply the war machines,” said Golberg. “It always has all over the world. So it’s a smart business deal. Israel is certainly hungry for the money. Again, the German state has perennially been pro-Israel in a very unbalanced sort of way.
“I think Merz feels justified in doing that because he feels his political future is related to that issue,” added Goldberg. “So this is good for Israel, but in a very, very limited sort of way. I don’t think Germany will stand with Israel should Israel continue to do what it’s doing now. I think it’s not accidental that Prime Minister Netanyahu isn’t visiting Berlin any time soon.”
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