Berlin: German diplomats are prepared to walk out in protest if Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad repeats before the UN General Assembly his past denials of the Holocaust, Berlin officials confirmed Tuesday.
A foreign ministry spokesman confirmed a newspaper report that Germany would respond harshly to any anti-Semitic rhetoric during the speech this Thursday.
"We are seeking a common response from the European Union (EU) nations," said the spokesman.
The plans were reported by the newspaper Handelsblatt.
In April, most EU delegates walked out of a meeting of the UN Human Rights Conference in Geneva, Switzerland, after Ahmadinejad claimed Zionism was "racism personified".
Handelsblatt said Israel had approached a variety of western foreign ministries in recent days to ask for a coordinated walkout from the room during Ahmadinejad's speech.
The Iranian president said Friday at a speech in Tehran that the Holocaust was a "fairy tale".
Bureau Report
First Published: Wednesday, September 23, 2009, 09:06