Germany–Lebanon relations

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Germany–Lebanon relations
Map indicating locations of Germany and Lebanon

Germany
Lebanon

Germany–Lebanon relations are "traditionally friendly" and "very close", according to the German Foreign Office. For Lebanon, Germany is one of the most important donor countries for the care of the numerous refugees in the country.[1] Among the Arabs in Germany, the Lebanese are among the largest groups with almost 160,000 members (2021).[2]

History

Contacts between the two societies have existed for centuries, for example, during the time of the

Wilhelm II visited the cities of Beirut and Baalbek.[3] With World War I, relations were severed and the German consulate was closed. After the resumption of diplomatic relations in 1927, Germany's diplomatic representation was handled from Damascus. After the Wehrmacht's French campaign in World War II, Lebanon and Syria were briefly under the control of Vichy France, which was linked to Nazi Germany. The Allies gained control of the area as early as 1941 with the Syria-Lebanon campaign. Lebanon became independent of France on November 22, 1943, and declared war on Germany in 1945 shortly before the end of the war.[4]

The

CIA cover agent.[5] The civil war also led to migration and flight of Lebanese to Germany. After the end of the civil war, Germany assisted the country in reconstruction and pacification.[3]

In 1997, a bilateral trade and investment agreement was signed. From 2006, Germany was involved in the UN mission United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon. Closer cooperation in the field of culture was concluded in 2010 with the signing of a bilateral cultural agreement. With the start of the civil war in Syria since 2011, the small country took in nearly one million refugees from the neighboring country. As a result, the German government provided material and financial aid to the country to cope with the crisis.

Germany and Hezbollah

See also: Iranian influence in Lebanon and Hezbollah–Iran relations

In April 2020, the

Federal Ministry of the Interior issued a ban on the Lebanese organization Hezbollah's activities in Germany.[6] The organization reportedly has nearly 1,000 supporters in Germany and continues to engage in political activity after the ban.[7] The official reason for the ban is Hezbollah's calls for the elimination of the state of Israel.[8] After the ban was applied, Hassan Nasrallah, the organization's leader claimed that Hezbollah hasn't been active in Europe in years.[9] Despite Nasrallah's claims, in November 2023, the German police carried out a massive nationwide operation against "Islamic Center Hamburg", an organization suspected of supporting Hezbollah.[10] Many Lebanese have emigrated due to wars between Iranian backed Hezbollah and Israel as well as economic and political internal problems in part due to Hezbollah as well as corruption that have led to Lebanon being considered a failed state by some.[11][12][13]

Economic relations

In 2018, Germany exported goods worth 760 million

automotive parts, machinery, and chemical and pharmaceutical products to Lebanon.[1] In 2021, the bilateral trade volume was still 559 million euros, placing Lebanon 96th in the ranking of Germany's trading partners.[14] Despite an investment agreement, there is relatively little German direct investment in Lebanon. Companies with their own presence in the country include Commerzbank and Lufthansa.[1]

Development cooperation

After Lebanon broke through the income threshold to become an

upper-middle-income country in 2003, German development aid was discontinued. After the 2006 Lebanon war between Hezbollah and Israel, German development aid was resumed. From the start of the civil war in neighboring Syria in 2011 until 2021, the German government made aid payments totaling 1.7 billion euros, largely to support refugees in the country and promote their integration into society. In addition, employment, municipal infrastructure and agriculture were also supported with German aid money. German aid money was used to finance the school fees of 795,000 school-age children between 2016 and 2021. During the same period, 8,000 homes were also rehabilitated for refugees and drinking water supplies were improved for 800,000 people in the country.[15] Germany also provided assistance in dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic in Lebanon and the 2020 explosion disaster in Beirut.[16]

Cultural relations

There are close cultural relations between the two countries, with the fields of cultural preservation and archaeology dominating. There are also exchange programs between Lebanese and German schools and universities. A number of German cultural institutions are represented in Lebanon, including:[17]

Migration

See also: Arabs in Germany
Support for the 2015 protests in Lebanon, Berlin

There is a large

organized crime.[19]

Military cooperation

German defense companies supplied Lebanon with various weapons, including rocket launchers (2017), helicopters (2006), Leopard 1 main battle tanks (2008), anti-tank missiles (2015), submachine guns (2008), and patrol boats (2007).[20]

Diplomatic missions

  • Lebenese embassy in Berlin
    Lebenese embassy in Berlin

See also

Individual references

  1. ^ a b c d "Germany and Lebanon: Bilateral relations". German Federal Foreign Office. Retrieved 2022-12-17.
  2. ^ "Bevölkerung in Privathaushalten nach Migrationshintergrund im weiteren Sinn nach ausgewählten Geburtsstaaten". Statistisches Bundesamt (in German). Retrieved 2022-12-17.
  3. ^ a b "Germany and Lebanon". Foundation Office Lebanon. 2018-01-28. Retrieved 2022-12-17.
  4. ^ Yassine, Hussein (2021-02-27). "The Time Lebanon Declared War On Nazi Germany". 961. Retrieved 2022-12-17.
  5. ISSN 2195-1349
    . Retrieved 2022-12-17.
  6. ^ Amt, Auswärtiges. "Entschlossen gegen terroristische Aktivitäten der Hisbollah vorgehen". Auswärtiges Amt (in German). Retrieved 2022-12-17.
  7. ISSN 1865-2263
    . Retrieved 2022-12-17.
  8. ^ "German government bans Hezbollah – DW – 04/30/2020". dw.com. Retrieved 2023-12-21.
  9. ^ "Hezbollah: Germany bowing to US, Israel – DW – 05/04/2020". dw.com. Retrieved 2023-12-21.
  10. ^ "German cops launch huge raid against pro-Hezbollah group". POLITICO. 2023-11-16. Retrieved 2023-12-21.
  11. ^ "Survey: Economic Collapse and Government Failure Drive Lebanese Youth to Emigrate". LCPS. Retrieved 2023-12-27.
  12. ISSN 0099-9660
    . Retrieved 2023-12-27.
  13. ^ Algemeiner, The (2023-05-25). "The Persecution of Christians in Lebanon - Algemeiner.com". www.algemeiner.com. Retrieved 2023-12-27.
  14. ^ "Rangfolge der Handelspartner im Außenhandel" (PDF). Statistisches Bundesamt. Retrieved 2022-09-30.
  15. ^ "Deutsche Entwicklungszu-sammenarbeit mit dem Libanon". Bundesministerium für wirtschaftliche Zusammenarbeit und Entwicklung (in German). Retrieved 2022-12-17.
  16. ^ "Hilfe für Beirut: Wie Deutschland jetzt unterstützt". Auswärtiges Amt (in German). Retrieved 2022-12-17.
  17. ^ "Willkommen bei der Deutsch-Arabischen Gesellschaft". www.d-a-g.de. Retrieved 2022-12-17.
  18. ^ "Ausländer in Deutschland bis 2021: Herkunftsland". Statista (in German). Retrieved 2022-12-17.
  19. ^ "Germany's most notorious crime families – DW – 05/18/2021". dw.com. Retrieved 2022-12-17.
  20. ^ "Deutsche Rüstungsexporte: Datenbank". ruestungsexport-info.de. Retrieved 2022-12-17.
  21. ^ "Deutsche Vertretungen in Libanon". Auswärtiges Amt (in German). Retrieved 2022-12-17.
  22. ^ "Vertretungen Libanons in Deutschland". Auswärtiges Amt (in German). Retrieved 2022-12-17.

External links

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