The Bertelsmann Foundation has released a survey “on the view of Germany held by Jews in Israel and the USA, and the view of Israel from Germany.” The full survey is available here, but the most interesting results, I think, are those relating to the threat posed by a nuclear Iran. At 62 percent, a significant majority of Germans understand the Iranian nuclear program to be an existential threat to the state of Israel. That number is slightly higher among Israelis, at 75 percent, and American Jews, at 73 percent.

The next question asks respondents if a military strike against Iran would be justified if negotiations fail. Interestingly, 80 percent of Israelis believe such action would be justified, which means that 5 percent believe an attack would be justified despite the fact that Iran doesn’t pose an existential threat to the country. The same number of American Jews that believe Iran to be a threat to Israel likewise responded that an attack would be justified. But among Germans, only 32 percent believed an attack would be justified. Which is half the number that believe Iran to be a threat to the Jewish state’s very existence. Can it be that one-third of Germans expect Israel to sit by idly while facing such a threat?