Heiko Maas told Foreign Ministry staff during Wednesday's handover speech that Germany would not "duck away" from its international responsibilities and the challenges on its doorstep.

There is a division in the world "between those who advocate for openness and tolerance, and those seeking a return to nationalism," Maas said. This division, he said, would define German foreign policy over the coming years.

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Read more: Heiko Maas: Who is Germany's new foreign minister?

On the back of Maas' approach to his new role as Germany's top diplomat, his first two official trips to neighboring countries will carry a great degree of symbolic value.

Immediately following his inauguration, the new foreign minister traveled to Paris to meet French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian.

Maas said the German government will work "very intensively and quickly" to follow through on French President Emmanuel Macron's plans for reforming the European Union.

Following months of delays during German coalition talks, Maas said it is now time "to finally grab hold of the outstretched hand of Emmanuel Macron with his proposals for the renewal of Europe."

Next week, he will travel to the Polish capital, Warsaw, for talks with officials from the nationalist, conservative Law and Justice Party.

Maas said it was time Germany "grabbed the outstretched hand of Emmanuel Macron" to start reforming the EU

Standing up to Russia

Maas also vowed that Germany would adopt a more hard-line stance in dealings with Russia.

The Ukraine crisis remains the biggest test of EU determination and cohesion, Maas said, adding that Russia's annexation of Ukraine's territory of Crimea and its ongoing aggression in Donetsk and Luhansk would not be tolerated.

The 51-year-old also said that he wanted to arrange a meeting of foreign ministers under the so-called Normandy format — a diplomatic group aimed at resolving the Ukraine crisis made up of officials from Germany, France, Russia and Ukraine. The last such meeting took place more than a year ago.

Read more: How does Germany contribute to NATO?

"Russia is and will remain our neighbor," Maas said. "We need to have constructive channels of dialogue at as many levels as possible."

"But when Russia defines itself as increasingly distant, and even in opposition to us, the West, we may regret it but it changes the reality of our foreign policy," the new foreign secretary added.

Germany's new foreign minister also said he "can completely understand" Britain's decision to expel 23 Russian diplomats and bilateral contacts in response to the poisoning of a former Russian spy in Salisbury. Maas said it was "disappointing that Russia so far doesn't appear to be prepared" to help in the case.

Improved Israel relations

Maas announced that he would travel to Israel to mark the country's 70th anniversary of its founding. "Personally, the German-Israeli history isn't just one of historical responsibility, but it also represents a deep motivation in my political decision-making," he said.

Read more: Netanyahu accuses German Foreign Minister Gabriel of 'tactlessness'

"I didn't go into politics out of respect for (former SPD Chancellor) Willy Brandt or the peace movement," Maas added. "I went into politics because of Auschwitz."

Last year, Chancellor Angela Merkel canceled an annual roundtable summit between Germany and Israel, citing the need to plan ahead for the federal elections. However, there were reports she chose to cancel out of anger over Israel's decision to continue expanding its settlements into the Palestinian territories. Relations between the two states have been difficult ever since.

Sigmar Gabriel handed over the reins of the Foreign Ministry to Heiko Maas

Sigmar Gabriel's parting message

Maas' predecessor, Sigmar Gabriel, stepped aside as foreign minister on Wednesday with an appeal to his former colleagues: Europe can no longer simply quote its own values; it needs to clearly define and enforce them.

While for a long time the United States could be regarded as the West's most reliable partner, that was no longer the case, Gabriel said.

The outgoing top diplomat and vice chancellor described his 14 months at the Foreign Ministry as humbling, given the multiple limits confronted in foreign policy.

Ministers under Merkel: Germany's new government Chancellor: Angela Merkel (CDU) Christian Democrat (CDU) Angela Merkel is Germany's chancellor. She is in her fourth term as leader of the German government and in her third at the head of a "grand coalition" between the CDU, its conservative Bavarian sister party, the Christian Social Union (CSU), and the Social Democrats (SPD). Merkel says she will not run for chancellor at the next general election in 2021.

Ministers under Merkel: Germany's new government Minister of the Interior, Heimat and Construction: Horst Seehofer (CSU) Seehofer was Bavaria's state premier until he took over the interior portfolio in Merkel's Cabinet. This will be the first time that the vaguely patriotic "Heimat" concept (roughly "homeland") is included in the interior minister's domain. Bavaria, however, has had a state Heimat Ministry for five years. Seehofer remains head of the conservative Christian Social Union (CSU) in Bavaria.

Ministers under Merkel: Germany's new government Minister for Foreign Affairs: Heiko Maas (SPD) Former Justice Minister Heiko Maas succeeded his Social Democrat colleague, Sigmar Gabriel, as foreign minister in March. Maas was in charge of the Justice Ministry when the government passed a controversial internet law to combat hate speech online.

Ministers under Merkel: Germany's new government Finance Minister: Olaf Scholz (SPD) Scholz served as mayor of Hamburg before moving to Berlin to take the reins at the Finance Ministry. The Finance Ministry's capture was a significant win for the SPD. Scholz will also serve as vice-chancellor. He had been in Merkel's Cabinet once before, as minister of labor and social affairs from 2007 to 2009.

Ministers under Merkel: Germany's new government Minister of Defense: Ursula von der Leyen (CDU) Von der Leyen has been defense minister since 2013 and kept her job in the new government. This comes despite numerous scandals within the Bundeswehr, Germany's military, that broke since she took over the Defense Ministry. Her relationship with the troops suffered, but Merkel trusts her.

Ministers under Merkel: Germany's new government Economic and Energy Affairs Minister: Peter Altmaier (CDU) Altmaier was Merkel's chief of staff at the Chancellery before his nomination to take over the Economy Ministry. The last time a CDU politician was in the post was half a century before. Altmaier is regarded as extremely loyal to the chancellor.

Ministers under Merkel: Germany's new government Minister of Justice and Consumer Protection: Katarina Barley (SPD) Katarina Barley took over as justice minister after serving as both minister of family affairs and labor in the previous government. The 49-year-old is a lawyer by training and holds both British and German citizenship.

Ministers under Merkel: Germany's new government Minister of Labor and Social Affairs: Hubertus Heil (SPD) Hubertus Heil succeeded Andrea Nahles, who stepped down to take over as head of the SPD. A member of the Bundestag since 1998, Heil has twice served as the party's secretary general.

Ministers under Merkel: Germany's new government Minister for the Environment: Svenja Schulze (SPD) Svenja Schulze replaced party colleague Barbara Hendricks, Germany's former minister for the environment, nature conservation and nuclear safety, in March. Schulze previously served as minister for innovation, science and research in the western German state of North Rhine-Westphalia.

Ministers under Merkel: Germany's new government Minister for Health: Jens Spahn (CDU) Jens Spahn, 37, is representative of a new political generation within the CDU and seen as a future contender for party leadership. In the last government, he served as the parliamentary state secretary in the Finance Ministry. Prior to that, he helped lead the CDU's health policy in the Bundestag.

Ministers under Merkel: Germany's new government Minister of Education and Research: Anja Karliczek (CDU) Anja Karliczek, a former hotel manager who is relatively unknown, was nominated by Merkel to take over the Education Ministry. She had a lot of money to spend: The ministry's budget was increased by €11 billion ($13.6 billion) to pay for school and university improvements shortly before her appointment.

Ministers under Merkel: Germany's new government Minister for Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth: Franziska Giffey (SPD) Franziska Giffey's elevation from the mayor of Berlin's Neukölln district to cabinet minister was perhaps one of the most eye-catching appointments. Giffey bypassed the Bundestag altogether to ascend into government. But the SPD leadership believed her experience in charge of what has often been described as Berlin's "troubled" district made her the most suitable candidate for the role.

Ministers under Merkel: Germany's new government Minister of Economic Cooperation and Development: Gerd Müller (CSU) Gerd Müller, 62, retained his post as development minister, which he has held since December 2013. He won the job over fellow CSU member Dorothee Bär, who was also in the running. Bär became the state minister for digital affairs in the chancellery, a newly created job.

Ministers under Merkel: Germany's new government Minister of Transport and Digital Infrastructure: Andreas Scheuer (CSU) Scheuer, considered a close ally of CSU party head Seehofer, took over the Transport Ministry from party colleague Alexander Dobrindt. He is experienced in the field: From 2009 to 2013, he was parliamentary state secretary in the Transport Ministry. Prior to his latest appointment, he was the CSU's secretary general.

Ministers under Merkel: Germany's new government Minister for Food and Agriculture: Julia Klöckner (CDU) Klöckner previously worked as parliamentary state secretary in the Agriculture Ministry from 2009 to 2011. Between her ministerial stints in Berlin, she was deputy chair of the CDU and headed the CDU in the western German state of Rhineland-Palatinate.

Ministers under Merkel: Germany's new government Chief of Staff at the Chancellery: Helge Braun (CDU) Helge Braun took over from CDU colleague Peter Altmaier as Chancellery head in March. He had previously served in deputy positions in the Chancellery and Education Ministry. Author: Carla Bleiker, Alexander Pearson



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dm/jm (dpa, AFP, Reuters)