Photo Credit: Mark Neiman / GPO
Germany's President Frank-Walter Steinmeier and Israel's President Reuven Rivlin in Jerusalem

Israel’s President Reuven Rivlin thanked his German counterpart, President Frank-Walter Steinmeier on Sunday for his opposition to the recent UNESCO resolution against Israeli sovereignty in Jerusalem, but made it clear the Jewish State is not an “occupier” in its own Land.

“We appreciate Germany’s leadership in the recent period in the defense of democracy and democratic values, around the world and in Europe particularly,” Rivlin said during their working meeting at the presidential residence in Jerusalem.

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“We all know that democracy is a condition for liberty, while liberty will never be a thing of simplicity. Israel is a vibrant democracy, with different, diverse, and critical voices.

“Sometimes, these voices are hard to digest, and outrageous, and … we reject the latest decision of UNESCO which defines Israel as an occupying power in Jerusalem, our capital,” Rivlin said.

“A people cannot be an occupier in its own land,” Israel’s president continued. “We are not occupiers in our own capital. We welcome Germany’s opposition to the distorted and twisted text of this decision.”

Rivlin also spoke about the civil war still raging across Israel’s northern border in Syria, and about the aid Israel is providing to the injured who arrive at the field hospital that was set up to help in the Golan Heights, as well as in other Israeli hospitals.

“As a nation that has suffered persecution and as refugees, more than any other nation in history, we cannot stand by in the face of the atrocities taking place just over the border.

“Here in Israel, the small hospital in the city of Nahariya has been transformed into a world leader in treating the casualties of war, most of them from Syria, defined as an enemy state. We do not fear giving aid to anyone.

“This is how we have acted in the past, and so we will continue. At the same time, we demand of the international community to do everything in order to end the ongoing humanitarian wilderness in Syria, with the removal of forces hostile to stability and peace in the region.”

President Steinmeier thanked his Israeli counterpart for his warm welcome and especially for their unusual meeting of the night past, when they toured Machane Yehuda market in Jerusalem, and saw young tourists from Germany enjoying their time with young Israelis, “scenes similar to what is happening in Berlin,” he said, calling it “a tremendous experience.”

Steinmeier said his first visit to Israel as president was a testimony to Germany’s commitment to Israel.

“ The renewal of our relationship is a miracle, a miracle which took place between Germans who took upon themselves the unimaginable guilt, and between the people of Israel, and the State of Israel who reached out a hand to them. Our relations are relations of trust, in which we are committed to the past, and working to build a shared future.”

In a reference to the recent friction between his foreign minister and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Steinmeier said, “In the last weeks, we have experienced turbulent winds, but the basis upon which our relations are founded is solid, and can withstand all challenges. Our relationship is too important and deep to be dependent on this or that discussion. And even when there are disagreements between us, as there have been in the past, they do not endanger these foundations.

“My visit here is intended to further strengthen the relations between us and to reinforce even more their roots. As friends, in my opinion, we have no need for new rules of behavior, and we do not need to fear what someone may say.”

However, the German president also reiterated his view that, “To my mind, the only way to reach a solution (to the conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Authority) is two states for two peoples, I don’t see any other option and we know that the status quo does not allow for real progress.”

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Hana Levi Julian is a Middle East news analyst with a degree in Mass Communication and Journalism from Southern Connecticut State University. A past columnist with The Jewish Press and senior editor at Arutz 7, Ms. Julian has written for Babble.com, Chabad.org and other media outlets, in addition to her years working in broadcast journalism.