Are German-Israeli Relations Still “Special?” A Response to Ambassador Shimon Stein
Shimon Stein’s essay on the complex relationship between Germany and Israel is both penetrating and provocative. As Israel approaches the 70th anniversary of the state’s founding on May 14, it …
Germany-Israel Relations: Unique or Normal?
Recent events and statements by German figures indicate a change in Germany’s attitude to Israel. What for decades was a unique bilateral relationship – grounded in the memory of the …
Does Pyeongchang Lead to Pyeonghwa?
For the first time in history, the world will witness a match in which North and South Korean athletes compete together against Japan. As symbolic as it may be, the …
Transnational Reconciliation and the Value of Transatlantic Civil Society Actors
“States cannot be tried before foreign courts because of their sovereign activity, for example, the actions of their soldiers,” claims Minister of Justice of the state of Berlin, Dirk Behrendt, …
Working for Reconciliation between Israelis and Palestinians: The Example of Friendship Across Borders
Working for reconciliation between Israel and the Palestinians is arduous but rewarding—it keeps providing glimmers of hope in a situation that often seems beyond hopeless politically, motivating us to persevere. …
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German-Greek Relations: A Recipe for Reconciliation?
In the March 2017 negotiations over Greece’s bailout review, Germany persisted in its two-pronged approach of rejecting international debt relief and insisting on domestic austerity. This stringent stance in the …
The Limits and Opportunities of Reconciliation with West Germany During the Cold War: A Comparative Analysis of France, Israel, Poland, and Czechoslovakia
The seventieth anniversaries in 2015 of the end of World War II and the Holocaust have generated renewed interest in reconciliation and the question of whether the German and European experience holds lessons for Japan and East Asia. Much of the thinking on comparative lessons, developed in the last fifteen years, has focused on an idealized notion of Germany’s successful international reconciliation.
A New Kind of Reconciliation in East Asia?
President Obama noted in an interview with the Asahi Shimbun before his visit to Hiroshima that his presence was an example of reconciliation: “I will point out that Prime Minister …
History and Memory in German-Israeli Relations: Varieties of Expression
May and June mark two important anniversaries in Germany’s postwar rebuilding and return to the community of nations: the end of World War II in Europe and the beginning of …
Remembering Japanese Journalist Yoshibumi Wakamiya, An Advocate for Reconciliation in Northeast Asia
Yoshibumi Wakamiya (1948-2016), prize-winning Japanese journalist and author who worked throughout a long and distinguished career to promote reconciliation between Japan and its neighbors, passed away on April 27 in …
Defining Dualities: Context, Content and Comparison in German-Israeli Relations in the Framework of Europeanization
German-Israeli relations against the background of Europeanization transpire at multiple levels. This essay begins with the context, and then turns to the content of the link between the German-Israeli relationship …
