Frank-Walter Steinmeier kicked off a three-day tour of the Middle East on Monday when he held talks with Saudi Arabia’s Mohammed bin Salman. Berlin’s reputation in the region has suffered due to its support for Israel.
German Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier met the de-facto ruler of Saudi Arabia, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, on Monday as he kicked off a three-day tour of the Middle East.
The first ever German head of state to visit the Kingdom, Steinmeier was welcomed to Riyadh with military honors before holding talks on the future of Syria after the fall of Bashar al-Assad and the situation in Gaza following the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.
“Saudi Arabia is a key player here in the region,” Steinmeier said, adding that the Kingdom’s power and influence have grown considerably in recent years. “And as this influence grows, so does the country’s responsibility.”
Both Germany and Saudi Arabia are in favor of a two-state solution for Israel and the Palestinians, but Berlin’s reputation in the region has suffered as a result of its steadfast support for Israel’s war in Gaza. Israel launched the war in response to the October 7, 2023, attack carried out by Hamas, which killed some 1,200 people and kidnapped nearly 250.
Israel’s military has devastated the Gaza Strip, displacing 1.9 million of the enclave’s 2.2 million Palestinian residents according to the UN, and killing at least 47,518 people, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.
Steinmeier again demanded the release of all Israeli hostages still held by the Palestinian militant group Hamas, which Germany and the EU regard as a terrorist group, and called for further negotiations towards a two-state solution, “an agreement which guarantees security for Israel and self-determination for Palestinians.”
This is necessary “to bring long-term stability and hopefully also peace to the region,” he said.
Other topics on the agenda included Iran’s weakened position in the region and changes in US foreign policy under President Donald Trump.
While in Riyadh, Steinmeier was also expected to hold talks with representatives from various Saudi think tanks as well as to visit an arts center.
Germany’s Steinmeier to visit Jordan
Steinmeier will depart for Jordan on Tuesday, where he will visit German service men and women at al-Azraq airbase, where Bundeswehr soldiers are stationed in the international fight against “Islamic State (IS)” terrorists.
Jordan, which directly borders both Syria and Israel, is home to 2.39 million Palestinians and according to the UN refugee agency UNHCR, hosts the world’s second-largest number of refugees per capita. Most of the 730,000 refugees officially registered with the UNHCR are displaced Syrians.
Steinmeier is scheduled to meet with Jordan’s King Abdullah II on Wednesday before departing for Turkey.
The trip was initially planned to take place in November but was postponed due to the pending collapse of Germany’s ruling center-left coalition, prompting snap elections to be held in late February.

Steinmeier to outline German interests to potentially skeptical partners
Steinmeier will wrap up his trip with a visit to Ankara, Turkey, where he will hold talks with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday evening.
Turkey, which is currently home to some 3.2 million Syrian refugees, has seen its influence in the region rise following the fall of Assad, and Steinmeier is expected to discuss plans to stabilize the war-torn nation with Erdogan.
Steinmeier’s office says the president will clearly articulate German interests in the region during his trip. He may, however, face skepticism in talks as many Arab countries seem to have lost faith in Germany as an honest broker in the region due to Berlin’s support for Israel’s war.
Germany has supported the two-state solution laid out in the Oslo Accords, signed by Israel and the Palestinian Liberation Organization in 1993, and is one of the leading international donors to the Palestinian Territories. But its continued support for Israel, and its opposition to charges of genocide made against Israel at the International Court of Justice, are likely to leave lingering consternation among regional partners.