Matthew Read says that instead of confronting the economic roots of fascism and sections of the ruling class who abetted Hitler, Germany, since 1949, has fostered a narrative of collective guilt.

By Matthew Read
Peoples Dispatch

The extent of the German government’s support for Israel during its ongoing offensive in Gaza has taken many by surprise.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has been even more restrained in his criticisms of Tel Aviv than U.S. President Joe Biden.

A central point of reference for German politicians is the notion of Staatsräson (“state reason”).

This was a term first coined in an essay by Germany’s former ambassador to Israel, Rudolf Drebler, in the early 2000s and repeated by Angela Merkel, the former chancellor,  in a speech before the Knesset in 2008.

It has since become a centerpiece of German public statements and an ideological tool to legitimize Israel’s “right to self-defense.”

As Scholz said on Oct. 12, 2023:

“At this moment there is only one place for Germany. We stand with Israel. … This is what we mean when we say, Israel’s security is Germany’s Staatsräson.”

In this context, a growing number of nations from the Global South have begun to challenge Germany for whitewashing and even justifying the genocide of the Palestinians.

In January, [shortly before his death on Feb. 24] Namibia’s late president Hage Geingob released a statement strongly criticizing Germany for its uncritical defense of Israel and emphasizing that the German government was now actively supporting a genocide in Palestine whilst it has still not atoned for its genocide against the Herero and Nama in Namibia (1904-1908).

For similar reasons, the Nicaraguan government is now taking Germany to the International Court of Justice for aiding and abetting the Israeli genocide in Gaza.

To understand what lies behind Germany’s Staatsräson and its bilateral relationship with Israel, it is necessary to understand the origins of the current German state and the tradition in which it stands.

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