Ben-nathan Absolves Germany’s Present Generation of Nazi Guilt

Asher Ben-Nathan, Israel’s Ambassador to West Germany, said today in an interview with the German Press Agency that he favored a youth exchange between Israel and West Germany. He said he felt the present generation of German youth was not responsible for the crimes of their fathers during Hitler’s Third Reich.

He also referred to West German pledges to provide economic aid to Israel, which were incorporated in the talks leading to the exchange of diplomatic relations, and said he hoped negotiations would be satisfactory to both sides. He said he had come to West Germany to facilitate mutual goals in a “dialogue in free and open language” and to attain good political and economic contacts. He said he favored particularly West German-Israeli cooperation in the cultural sphere. Discussing his impressions of his first month in Bonn as envoy, he said “I have found a friendly welcome and I have been treated very well. Everywhere I have had the possibility of free and open talks about our problems.”