Israel Matzav

Confirmed: Merkel blackmailed Netanyahu

An Israeli official has confirmed a report in a German newspaper that German Chancellor Angela Merkel threatened to cancel an Israeli order for a Dolphin class submarine unless Israel turned over tax money to the 'Palestinian Authority.'

"The [submarine] was the icing on the cake Israel received for agreeing to the European request [to transfer the funds]," the official said.

On Sunday, German newspaper Welt am Sonntag reported that German Chancellor Angela Merkel threatened Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu with the halting of a German plan to deliver a submarine to Israel if the latter refused to resume the transfer of tax revenues to the Palestinian Authority.

According to the report, Israel yielded to pressure from Berlin and unfroze the funds. Immediately after, a German government official announced her country would build and pay up to one-third of the cost of a sixth Dolphin-class submarine to be delivered to the Israeli navy.

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Welt am Sonntag reported that German deputies were confidentially informed by the Merkel administration that delivery of the sixth Dolphin was put on hold because of Netanyahu’s settlement policies.

According to the German paper, the Merkel administration “informed the heads of parties (Bundestag) and leading foreign politicians that Israel made concessions.”

The paper cited unnamed deputies from the governing coalition who said that there was never a serious attempt to use the Dolphin as leverage over Israel.

Welt am Sonntag wrote that a second theory is also “plausible” in terms of the delivery of the Dolphin to Israel.

The paper cited Iran’s “new aggression” last week, which culminated in the storming of Britain’s Embassy on Tuesday by the Basij militia controlled by Iran’s Revolutionary Guards.

When the euro collapses, will anyone care what the Germans think any more? They might. Germany may be the only country left standing in Europe.

Labels: Angela Merkel, Binyamin Netanyahu, Dolphin class submarines, Hamas-Fatah reconciliation, Palestinian tax transfers, Unilateral declaration of independence (UDI)

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 3:30 PM