Germany is Europe’s largest economy, most populous nation and influential voice in European institutions. An important global player, it boasts the fourth largest economy in the world. The country has significant influence over Israel’s relations with Europe, advocates for growing economic and scientific ties, and has sponsored several key agreements between the EU and Israel.
Germany is traditionally regarded as Israel’s second most important strategic ally after the United States. With total bilateral trade amounting to $13.9 billion in 2019, Germany is Israel’s largest trade partner in Europe. Both countries share important strategic interests in the Middle East, including combating terrorism and extremism, while promoting regional stability and peace. Germany supports various Israeli defense projects and plays a key role vis-a-vis Iran. The German government led efforts to place Hezbollah’s military wing on the EU’s list of designated terrorist organizations.
Israel’s security and well-being have been a fundamental pillar of German post-war foreign policy. Chancellor Angela Merkel characterized Germany’s support for Israel’s right to exist to its raison d’état. The painful history of relations between the Jewish people and Germany continues to have a profound impact on political ties between Israel and Germany. But German sympathy for Israel is eroding, as the generation after the Holocaust is succeeded by grandchildren and great-grandchildren for whom the past is less immediate. It is one of the great challenges to maintain the high level of bilateral relations and to keep Israel on top of the Ger-man political agenda. Moreover, it is paramount for both countries to find out how much they actually have in common, the interests and values they share, that go far beyond the well-known ties of history.
ELNET in Germany
ELNET was established in Berlin in 2014 and is an independent non-profit organiza-tion. It facilitates closer relations between Germany and Israel on the basis of shared democratic interests and values. Together with its affiliates in Israel, France, Poland and Belgium, ELNET-Germany fosters the ties between European and Israeli decision makers and builds a network with its dialogue programs and delegations.

OP-ED: The Abraham Accords: A Chance to Tackle Climate Change in the Middle East
By Carsten Ovens, Executive Director of ELNET-Germany. This article was first published in the December issue of the German magazine Diplomatisches Magazin. Dry riverbeds and

Tenth German-Israel Strategic Forum
ELNET’s Forum of Strategic Dialogue held the tenth Strategic Dialogue between Germany and Israel.

ELNET Hosted First GIHF-AI Conference in Israel
ELNET hosted in November 2022 the first GIHF-AI Conference in Israel on digital health, focused on how Germany and Israel can collaborate together for a better future.

As Germany Adopts National Strategy Against Antisemitism, ELNET Announces International Antisemitism Summit in March 2023
As the German Federal Government adopts a National Strategy Against Antisemitism ELNET doubles down and increases its efforts in the fight.

ELNET and the Sylke-Tempel-Fellowship-Program brought 17 young journalists to Israel
ELNET brought 17 young promising German and Israeli journalists together to Israel to learn about current challenges and opportunities in Israel and the Middle East.

ELNET’s GINSUM 2nd Digital Health Delegation: Advancing the Healthcare Revolution
ELNET Germany again traveled to Israel with a delegation of 24 high-ranking participants as part ofthe innovation project German Israeli Network of Startups & Mittelstand (GINSUM) to take up the great success of the first GINSUM Digital Health delegation in November 2021.
ELNET-Germany Team

Carsten Ovens

Janika Bratvogel

Carolin Bischop

Marius Strubenhoff

Sarah Denzel

Lea Ledwon
ELNET-Germany

Dr. Lidia Averbukh

Hanna Börgmann

Elisabeth Spiegel
