German Chancellor Angela Merkel arrived in Israel on Monday afternoon for a two-day visit that will see her meeting top Israeli officials and presiding over a German-Israeli cabinet session.
Merkel, who is travelling with nine of her ministers, was expected to head directly from the airport to Jerusalem where she would hold talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Immediately afterwards, the two were to host a joint meeting of the German and Israeli cabinets at Netanyahu's office followed by a dinner at a Jerusalem hotel. This will be the third such joint meeting between the governments of the two countries since 2008.
On Tuesday, Merkel will meet Israeli President Shimon Peres as well as opposition leader Tzipi Livni, before heading to Tel Aviv to address a security conference.
The last time Merkel visited was in 2008 when she gave a landmark address to the Knesset, Israel’s parliament, on the 60th anniversary of the founding of the Jewish state.
An urgent EU Foreign Ministers meeting in Brussels on the situation in Egypt and Tunisia in the Arab world led German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle to arrive in Israel Sunday for a brief visit, instead of arriving Monday with Merkel.
The German minister on Sunday met with his Israeli counterpart Avigdor Lieberman.
The two countries are expected to sign bilateral accords including a letter of intent to increase bilateral cooperation in assisting developing countries.
Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon will sign the agreement with the German Federal Minister for Economic Cooperation and Development Dirk Niebel. The first project will be the rehabilitation of contaminated regions in Kenya adjacent to Lake Victoria.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that Israel and Germany have many joint economic, security and diplomatic interests. "We see Germany as a central anchor in our relations with Europe, as one of the most important countries in Europe, and one of the most important countries to Israel."
On Tuesday, Merkel will receive an honorary doctorate from Tel Aviv University. She will also participate in a conference at the Institute for National Security Studies.