CDU leader Friedrich Merz: First announcement causes outrage

The Left is furious, the possible coalition partner SPD is cautiously critical. The issue is an explosive invitation from Friedrich Merz.

One day after the federal election , from which the CDU emerged as the strongest party, party chairman Friedrich Merz caused a stir with a move on the international stage. The 69-year-old, who will soon replace acting Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD), clearly positioned himself on a possible visit to Germany by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu .

In a phone call on Sunday evening, he assured Netanyahu that he would not be arrested in Germany. According to Israeli sources, Merz announced an invitation for Netanyahu during the conversation.

Such a visit is not without controversy, as there is an arrest warrant against Netanyahu from the International Criminal Court in The Hague (ICC). However, CDU leader Friedrich Merz has now stressed that he would be happy to welcome Netanyahu to Germany and that he could enter the country without any consequences. This statement immediately sparked criticism.

The Left Party accused the CDU leader of "double standards". Germany has always insisted that international arrest warrants must be implemented, said Left Party co-leader Jan van Aken. "If Vladimir Putin comes to Germany, then this arrest warrant must be implemented. The same applies to Netanyahu," he said. "Double standards are a catastrophe." At the same time, van Aken stressed that Israel's right to exist is "non-negotiable."

The Hague Court itself also intervened. According to the Court, it is not the task of member states to unilaterally judge the Court's decisions. The Hague Court pointed out that Germany is also obliged to recognize and implement the decisions since the Rome Statute. All 27 EU states have signed the statute. Israel, on the other hand, does not recognize the Court, nor does the USA .

"The independence of the ICC is of central importance and we respect its procedures and the decisions of its bodies. This applies without exception," said SPD foreign policy expert Nils Schmid. However, he added that "the commandment of wise diplomacy" requires that the German government "find suitable means and ways to maintain close relations with the Israeli government in the future without undermining the authority of the ICC."

The SPD is considered a possible coalition partner for the CDU. After the federal election, Merz is only considering an alliance with the Social Democrats or a Kenya coalition with the SPD and the Greens. Negotiations to form a government are expected in the coming weeks. Merz had announced that he wanted to negotiate a coalition agreement by Easter so that he could then be elected chancellor.

Netanyahu congratulated Merz on his election victory on Sunday. On Monday, his office announced that Merz had extended an invitation - despite the "scandalous decision of the International Criminal Court to label the prime minister a war criminal."

The ICC had blamed Netanyahu for waging the war in the Gaza Strip against the radical Palestinian Hamas movement with unjustified harshness. He rejects this. Germany is one of the signatories of the court's statute, should actually adhere to its requirements and is considered an advocate of the authority of international organizations and international law.

The CDU leader said he had told Netanyahu "that we should see each other soon after the government is formed," Merz told journalists. "And in the event that he plans to visit Germany, I have also promised that we will find ways and means to ensure that he can visit Germany and leave again without being arrested in Germany." Merz went on to say that he thought it was "a completely absurd idea" that an Israeli prime minister could not visit Germany.

The SPD politician Schmid suggested a way out and pointed out that Israel, as a democratic constitutional state "with a strong, independent judiciary", is in a position to investigate allegations of possible violations of international law itself. This is in line with the complementarity principle of the ICC, which emphasizes the jurisdiction of national courts when they conduct corresponding proceedings. "This option is always open to the Israeli authorities and remains unchanged." The Union and the SPD are about to begin exploratory talks on the formation of a new federal government.