Climate Minister Habeck travels to Israel to talk about the expansion of renewable energies. But a gas field will also be an issue. If neighboring countries make their LNG terminals available, Israel could become Germany’s gas supplier.
In Israel and the Palestinian Territories, Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck also wants to speak this week about the development of a new gas field and the recent escalation of violence in the Middle East conflict. “There is still a lack of gas if we want to make ourselves independent of Russia,” said the Economics and Climate Protection Minister shortly before leaving for Israel. Although this question is not the focus of his trip, it will also be discussed.
“Israel also has a large gas field, which is easy to explore,” but a short-term gas export to Europe from there would not be easy to manage due to the lack of infrastructure. Building an infrastructure that would be completed around 2027 “and then has to be dismantled again five years later, that doesn’t make any sense,” he pointed out. However, if cooperation with neighboring countries that have LNG terminals were to come about in the short term, “then that could certainly help”. The focus of his trip, however, is the expansion of renewable energies.
Habeck’s four-day trip takes him to Israel, the Palestinian territories and Jordan. A wave of terrorism has killed 18 people in Israel since March. An Israeli security guard and a soldier were shot dead by Palestinians in the West Bank. The Israeli army has been conducting raids in parts of the occupied West Bank for weeks. According to the Palestinian Ministry of Health, more than 30 Palestinians have been killed since late March. Some of them were killed during military operations, but also in their own attacks or in clashes with the army.
“In Israel and between the Palestinian territories there is enormous tension these days, many deaths, many attacks by Palestinian terrorist groups in Israel, robust action by Israeli soldiers or security forces in the Palestinian territories and in Jerusalem,” said Habeck. His goal is “to bring the issue of de-escalation back to the table, as far as Germany can.” He added: “If that works out, it would be wonderful.”
