Jeffrey D. Sachs
Berliner Zeitung, Interviewed by Michael Maier
Economist and diplomat Jeffrey Sachs says: The German position that Israel has a right of veto on the two-state solution is wrong.
How do you see the German handling of the Gaza crisis?
The German government has begun to recognize the reality of Israel’s genocide against the Palestinian people, including the mass starvation of 2 million people, but Germany has still not recognized or acknowledged the extent of the catastrophe that is unfolding at Israel’s hands, and therefore it has not taken requisite actions.
What should be the response of the German Government to the dramatic escalation, having the UN declaring a famine?
The German Government should immediately recall its ambassador from Israel, summon Israel’s ambassador to Germany to issue a firm warning to Israel about the illegality and criminality of Israel’s actions, demand immediate food relief under UN auspices, and join with all EU countries to recognize the State of Palestine immediately – to end Israel’s delusions about eliminating the Palestinian people and the Palestinian state.
What should Germany do regarding the upcoming occupation of Gaza City?
Germany, and the EU in its entirety, should call for an immediate UN Security Council resolution to stop the Israeli military actions and mass starvation in Gaza, and to open the borders of Gaza to immediate large-scale food aid through UN systems in response to the mass starvation.
The religious right has seized the Knesset and now we have a Knesset resolution to annex the West Bank, new West Bank settlements. Should Germany accept this?
Israel has reached the stage of a mass delusion that the “Palestinian Problem” can be ended once and for all. This is a genocidal madness. The world must tell Israel and the US (which is actively complicit) that Never Again means Never Again. Netanyahu, Ben-Gvir, and Smotrich are war criminals and should be regarded as such. The world should deplore and strongly condemn the US sanctions on the International Criminal Court, which displays the US complicity in Israel’s genocide.
Should Germany recognize a state of Palestine – and would that be more than symbolic?
Immediate recognition of Palestine as a state and as the 194th UN member is far more than symbolic. It would end decisively Israel’s delusion that it can annex the territories occupied in 1967 and thereby extinguish the Palestinian right to political self-determination, including a state on the borders of 4 June 1967 as per international law.
Israel could not be more explicit in its intentions: the end the State of Palestine once and for all. The German Government’s position – in favor of the two-state solution but based on negotiation with Israel – is tragically and simply wrong, either intentionally or through astounding naivete. It gives Israel a veto on Palestine. It does not lead to a two-state solution, just the opposite. It says that the two-state solution is up to Israel, which it is not. It is up to the world community to defend Palestine against a genocide.
Could Germany act as a mediator between the Arabs, Israel and Hamas?
No. We don’t need Germany as a mediator. We need decisive action by the UN Security Council, action that is currently vetoed by the US. The key to ending the war is to pressure the US to stop backing Israel’s genocide, and to stop vetoing a state of Palestine in the UN. Germany and the EU have as first line of responsibility to get the US to change its position – as it is the US that vetoes the two-state solution and peace. Israel is of course against the two-state solution, but the UN Security Council can impose it as a matter of international law and keeping the peace.
German chancellor Merz has announced to pause specific weapons for Israel – isn’t this a step in the right direction?
Yes, this is a small step in the right direction.
German public opinion is very much shaped by the Nazi-crimes against the Jews. What do you as a Jew tell the Germans how they should act?
Israel is committing a genocide. The intention of the Israeli government is to starve and wipe out the Palestinian people, and to prevent forever a state of Palestine. This intention is explicitly stated by members of the Israel government on almost a daily basis. It is explained by leading Israeli scholars, NGOs, and politicians. It is known to the world.
Germany’s responsibility to history is to prevent another genocide. Germany committed a genocide against the Herero and Nama people during 1904-1908, as Germany has officially acknowledged. Germany committed a genocide against the Jewish people during World War II. Germany must not be complicit in another genocide now, this time against the Palestinian people.
As an American Jew, I would like to say clearly that Germany’s responsibility is not to Israel but to international law and morality. Germany’s responsibility is to prevent another genocide. Israel does not represent the Jews. Israel is a nation state that is currently engaged in genocide. In my view, Israel currently stands antithetically to Jewish values and to human rights and international law. It must be stopped now for its own security as well as for the security of the Palestinians and for world peace and justice.