Committed To Delivering Submarines To Egypt, Israel: Germany

The German Government reaffirmed its commitment to Israel and Egypt over the supply of two submarines. The statement comes following speculation of a rift between the two countries. German Chancellor Angela Merkel, said, "There has been no change in the German government's position towards Israel, in the commitment the German government feels towards Israel's security". Ties between Egypt and Israel have broken down since Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak was overthrown in 2011. The Egyptian revolution has stirred fears in Israel that Egypt may undermine the peace treaty the two nations signed in 1979. According to media reports, Israel is concerned that its navy may fall behind if Egypt gets modern German submarines. Germany has supplied Israel with three "Dolphin" class submarines and the total is expected to reach six by 2017. According to German news source, SPIEGEL, Merkel made major concessions to Israel, taking over a third of the costs and giving Israel until 2015 to pay its share. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has described the German submarines as "very important" for the security of his country.