“Tehran must immediately halt bombing civilian targets in Israel,” said German Chancellor Friedrich Merz on Sunday (15.06.2025) in Berlin before leaving for G7 summit in Canada. At the same time, he referred to the precautions taken by the German authorities: "We are besides preparing in Germany in case Iran attacks Israeli or judaic targets in our country," he said.
A Threat to Israel
The Chancellor besides stressed Germany's position that Iran cannot make or have atomic weapons. As he stated, "it would make a threat to Israel, the mediate East and the full global community." Since the Iranian atomic programme represents a "existential threat to the State of Israel", this country has the right to "defence its existence and the safety of its citizens," said Merz.
The head of the German government indicated that the conflict could not be extended. “Other countries in the region cannot become a battlefield,” he added.
Therefore, solutions should be sought on a diplomatic basis. To this end, German abroad Minister Johann Wadephul has a close dialog with his counterparts in the region. Merz himself spoke to Sultan Oman on the telephone earlier.
Israel besides asked Germany to supply fire-fighting measures and, as the Chancellor assured, Germany "will not immediately begin to act for this purpose".
G7 Summit
Friedrich Merz expects the conflict between Israel and Iran to be 1 of the main themes starting on Monday, June 16, of the G7 summit in Canada. besides the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine will be the subject of talks. The participation of the president of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenski and NATO head Mark Rutte is "a clear signal of support for Ukraine," said Merz.
He added that he wanted to usage the summit to accelerate the ceasefire negotiations initiated by US president Donald Trump.
However, he explained that additional force is needed to get Moscow to negotiate. "We so want to impose fresh sanctions at the European Council at the end of the month," said the German Chancellor.
Also at the G7 summit in Canada, Merz wants to convince partners, especially the US, to impose stronger sanctions on Russia.
The G7 summit in Kananaskis will last until Tuesday, June 17. It will be attended by the heads of state and government of the United States, Japan, Germany, France, large Britain, Italy and Canada. The gathering is the first global summit attended by Donald Trump since returning to the White House.
