Israel and Germany signed a security declaration on Sunday aimed at expanding cooperation in counterterrorism and cyber defence. The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated that the pact addresses perceived threats from Iran and its allies in the region.
A statement released by the Prime Minister’s office said, “Iran and its proxies — Hezbollah, Hamas and the Houthis — threaten not only Israel but also regional stability and international security.”
The agreement formalizes a broad security partnership between the two countries’ security establishments. “The declaration signed today anchors deep cooperation with Germany in the fields of cyber security, counterterrorism and advanced technologies,” the statement continued, adding, “Israel’s enemies should know: our eyes are on them at all times and everywhere.”
The declaration was signed by Netanyahu and the visiting German Interior Minister, Alexander Dobrindt.
This pact builds on existing military ties. Last month, Germany approved a $3.1 billion expansion of a contract for the Israeli-made Arrow 3 anti-ballistic missile defence system, which was developed with support from the United States. The deal is now valued at approximately $6.5 billion and has been described by Israel as its largest-ever military export contract.
In a related development on Sunday, Israel’s Foreign Minister Gideon Saar met with Dobrindt and called on the European Union to designate Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a “terrorist organisation.”
This call from the Israeli Foreign Minister was made amid a period of widespread protests within Iran, which began over economic concerns and grew into a wider movement against the government.
