Merkel visits Israel to mark country's 60th anniversary

A joint session of Israeli and German Cabinet ministers and a speech by Germany's leader to the Israeli parliament: The visit of German Chancellor Angela Merkel to Israel, ushering in 60th anniversary celebrations of the Jewish state, is marked by several firsts.

Merkel arrived on Sunday, accompanied by half her Cabinet, on the three-day trip to Israel.

Merkel and her ministers were yesterday scheduled to join Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and his Cabinet for the first of what will be annual consultations of the two governments.

Merkel will today become the first foreign head of government to speak to Israel's parliament, or Knesset. In the past, the honor has been reserved only for heads of state and monarchs.

Merkel said on Sunday the upgrade of ties would open a new chapter in relations. At the government meeting, the two sides were to sign off on projects including environmental protection, science and defense.

The chancellor said Germany would never lose sight of its "historical responsibility," a reference to the Nazi Holocaust, but said it is also important to look to the future.

Merkel began her visit on Sunday with a trip to the home of Israel's founding father, David Ben-Gurion, in Sde Boker, an Israeli communal farm in the southern Negev Desert.

She visited the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial yesterday, then was to attend the joint meeting of Cabinet ministers and hold talks with Olmert. Iran's nuclear program was likely to be on the agenda.

Later, Merkel, a former physicist, was to visit the Weizmann Institute, one of Israel's top scientific research facilities.

Shimon Stein, a former Israeli ambassador to Germany, said the upgrade in ties is unique for Israel.

"For the first time, Israel will sign an agreement that will institutionalize annual meetings at the prime minister-chancellor level," he said.

Six decades after the end of World War II, a state visit by a German leader is still an emotional event for the Jewish state. Six million Jews perished in the Nazi Holocaust, and about 250,000 elderly survivors live in Israel.

It is Merkel's second visit to Israel since becoming chancellor in 2005. She is not visiting the Palestinian territories, but her government announced last week that it would sponsor a conference in Berlin in coming months to help upgrade the Palestinian security forces and justice system.

Palestinian Foreign Minister Riad Malki said Merkel would soon pay a "special visit" to the West Bank to discuss German support for the Palestinians. Germany is a major donor to the Palestinian Authority, headed by moderate Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.