Konrad Adenauer Stiftung organized an information evening with distinguished guests on the occasion of the first visit to Israel by Michael Breuer MP, Minister for European and Federal affairs in North Rhine-Westphalia.

The minister had the chance to discuss the current political situation in Israel with experts from politics, media, churches and society – all having different perspectives on the topic. Among the participants were Gabriel Bach, former judge to the Israeli Supreme Court and deputy prosecutor in the court case against Adolf Eichmann; Ambassador Yssachar Ben-Yaakov; Arieh Rath, former chief editor of the Jerusalem Post; Jörg Bremer, longtime correspondent of the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung in Jerusalem; Nikolaus Kircher, director of the German Schmitt-School in East-Jerusalem; as well as representatives from several churches, Yad Vashem, Action Reconciliation Service for Peace (ARSP) and the Jerusalem Foundation.

Minister Breuer was accompanied among others by Professor Gert Kaiser, the President of the Center for Sciences NRW. Breuer related how impressed he was with his first discussions in Israel. According to the minister, Israeli public interest in Germany and the EU playing a major role in the Middle East were much greater than he expected. He announced that he will spread the message that Israelis accept and even request that Germany - especially in view of its EU Council Presidency - should take over more responsibility in the region. He planned to mainly address multipliers in politics and media regarding that issue upon his return, Breuer said.

The participants confirmed that within the last years the German-Israeli relations had developed positively into a trusting cooperation at all levels. However, current problems within Israeli society were also discussed openly. According to Abbot Benedikt Lindemann from the Dormitio Church at Mt. Zion, the future of Israel is at risk due to the rising fear and pessimism among its population. Nevertheless, reports about successful and future oriented projects implemented by German organizations in Israel, such as the churches and the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung, left the Minister and his delegation optimistic concerning developments in Israel.