Germany 'would have advised against' US-Israel war on Iran, says Chancellor Merz

BERLIN: German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on Wednesday that if the United States had consulted Berlin about the US-Israel war against Iran, Germany would have recommended against the military action.

"We would have advised against taking this course of action as it has been pursued so far,"

Merz told parliament, making clear that Washington had not consulted Germany regarding the war.

The German chancellor acknowledged that Berlin shares common ground with both Israel and the United States on the broader objective concerning Tehran.

"We share with Israel and the United States the objective that Iran should no longer pose a threat in future,"

Merz stated during his address to the German parliament.

Iran blamed for regional instability

While expressing reservations about the military campaign, Merz was unequivocal in his criticism of the Iranian regime's conduct over the years. He told lawmakers that Tehran had systematically violated international norms over an extended period.

"For years and decades, the Iranian regime has broken rule after rule, spread terror across the world and destabilised the neighbourhood. This regime bears responsibility for the current crisis in the region,"

the chancellor said.

Questions remain over military strategy

Despite sharing the assessment of the threat posed by Iran, Merz indicated that Berlin harbours significant concerns about the ongoing military operation. He noted that Germany still has unresolved questions about the war and pointed to what he described as the absence of a viable strategy from Washington and Tel Aviv.

"At the same time, however, we have also made it clear that we still have many questions regarding this war,"

Merz said, adding that the United States and Israel had shown "no convincing plan as to how this operation could succeed."

The chancellor's remarks represent a notable public divergence between Germany and its key Western ally, the United States, on the military campaign against Iran. His comments underscored that while Berlin remains aligned with Washington on the strategic goal of neutralising the Iranian threat, it has serious reservations about the means being employed to achieve that objective.

Merz's statement that the US did not consult Germany before launching the war highlighted a gap in transatlantic coordination on one of the most consequential military operations in the Middle East in recent years.

Meanwhile, intelligence assessments have indicated that the Middle East conflict has heightened the threat to Israeli and US interests in the region.