Relationship dossier
Germany
Israel
Relationship assessment
Close partnership grounded in historical responsibility, security cooperation and ongoing policy disagreements.
Germany toward Israel
+45Germany’s government has supported Israel’s security and supplied military equipment, while maintaining bilateral strategic consultations. West Germany also concluded the Luxembourg Agreement providing reparations to Israel. German governments have criticized Israeli settlement policy, creating recurring political disagreement.
Israel toward Germany
+35Israel’s government has maintained strategic and political cooperation with Germany, including bilateral consultations, and accepted reparations under the Luxembourg Agreement concluded with West Germany. Israeli governments have also maintained relations despite German criticism of settlement policy.
Overall relationship
+40The relationship is a sustained partnership rooted in Germany’s historical responsibility and reinforced by reparations, security support and strategic consultations. Cooperation is substantial, though German criticism of Israeli settlement policy remains a recurring source of disagreement.
How to read these scores
Scores are rough judgments, not objective measurements or current verification. Directional scores describe government policy and conduct, not public opinion. The overall score is an independent estimate, never an average.
- −100
- Extreme sustained hostility
- −50
- Substantially adversarial
- 0
- Mixed or neutral, supported by knowledge
- +50
- Substantially cooperative
- +100
- Exceptionally close sustained partnership
“Not assessed” means there is no recorded score. Pair existence makes no claim about diplomatic recognition or established relations.
Relationship context
Overview
Germany and Israel maintain a close relationship shaped by Germany’s responsibility for the Holocaust and substantial political and security cooperation. Germany has provided financial reparations and supports Israel’s security, including through arms sales. The governments also cooperate through regular bilateral and strategic consultations. Relations include disagreements, particularly over Israeli settlement policy and Germany’s criticism of it.
Areas of tension
- German criticism of Israeli settlement expansion and occupation-related policies
Key developments
West Germany and Israel concluded the Luxembourg Agreement, providing reparations to Israel.
West Germany and Israel established diplomatic relations.
Major uncertainties
- The current scope and implementation of bilateral security and strategic cooperation are unclear.
- The extent to which political disagreements have affected practical cooperation is unclear.