Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier travelled to Israel for a state visit from 30 June to 2 July, at the invitation of Israeli President Reuven Rivlin. The Federal President’s state visit to Israel had originally been planned for 2020. With his visit he underscored and paid tribute to Germany’s close and unique relations with the State of Israel. President Steinmeier also bid farewell in person to the outgoing President Rivlin, whose term of office was about to end on 7 July 2021.
As well as a reception with military honours, political talks and a state banquet hosted by the Israeli President, the Federal President met the latter’s elected successor to the office, Isaac Herzog.
During his trip the Federal President took the opportunity to exchange views with the new government. To this end he held talks with Prime Minister Naftali Bennett and Alternate Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Yair Lapid.
To commemorate the origins of Israel, the two heads of state together visited the grave of Theodor Herzl in Jerusalem and the Holocaust memorial Yad Vashem. In two panel discussions, the Federal President also engaged in talks on future prospects for Israeli society and the challenges presented by the coexistence of Jews and Arabs.
During his visit to Israel, the Federal President awarded the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany to four outstanding figures who have made a valuable contribution towards furthering German-Israeli relations: Holocaust survivor Regina Steinitz, writer David Grossman, artist Michal Rovner and former head of the Yad Vashem Holocaust Remembrance Center Avner Shalev.
The final day of the trip was devoted to the vision of Israel’s future in the desert held by the state’s founder David Ben Gurion. To this end, the two heads of state travelled to the south of Israel, where they visited an Institute for Desert Research and the grave of Ben Gurion and his wife Paula in Sde Boker.
Overview of the programme:
Wednesday, 30 June 2021
- Arrival in Tel Aviv
- Tel-Aviv-Yafo, The Peres Center for Peace and Innovation
Panel discussion on future prospects for Israeli society - Speech on the occasion of the presentation of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany, followed by a reception hosted by the Federal President
Thursday, 1 July 2021
- Jerusalem, residence of the President of the State of Israel
Welcome with military honours by President Reuven Rivlin - Planting of a tree in the garden of the residence
- Joint press conference
- Talks with President Rivlin
- Mount Herzl National Cemetery
Wreath-laying ceremony at the grave of Theodor Herzl - Yad Vashem Holocaust Remembrance Center
Visit to the photo exhibition "Flashes of Memory" and the Shoah Legacy Campus as well as wreath-laying ceremony in the Hall of Remembrance - Official residence of the Prime Minister
Talks with Naftali Bennett, Prime Minister of the State of Israel - Delegation hotel
Luncheon with Isaac Herzog, President-elect of the State of Israel - Talks with Yair Lapid, Alternate Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of the State of Israel
- Residence of the President of the State of Israel
State banquet in honour of the Federal President hosted by Reuven Rivlin, President of the State of Israel
Friday, 2 July 2021
- Jerusalem, German Hospice St. Charles in Jerusalem
Talks on the challenges presented by the coexistence of Jews and Arabs - Flight to Sde Boker
- Ben Gurion University of the Negev
Visit to the Jacob Blaustein Institute for Desert Research and tour of the campus - Grave of David and Paula Ben Gurion
Joint visit to the grave - Return flight to Berlin
The Federal President was accompanied on his trip by a delegation which included Michelle Müntefering (Member of the German Bundestag), Minister of State at the Federal Foreign Office; Elisabeth Motschmann (Member of the German Bundestag), Committee on Foreign Affairs and Committee on Cultural and Media Affairs; Uwe Becker, President of the German-Israeli Association; Hetty Berg, Director of the Jewish Museum in Berlin; Omri Boehm, philosopher and author; Daniel Donskoy, actor and musician; Meron Mendel, Director of the Bildungsstätte Anne Frank; Tamara Or, Executive Director of the German-Israeli Future Forum Foundation; Josef Schuster, President of the Central Council of Jews in Germany; Friede Springer, Chair of the Friede Springer Stiftung; and Ruth Ur, Director of the Yad Vashem Office in Berlin.