German Defence Minister Thomas de Maiziere dismissed Israeli pressure not to sell two submarines to Egypt, while acknowledging the country was "not as stable" as he would like in an interview published Saturday.

"No country in the world has the right of veto to decisions taken by the German government," the minister told the Frankfurter Rundschau when asked to comment on the probable sale of two Type 209 attack submarines.

Questioned specifically about Israeli pressure not to go through with the deal, he repeated: "Nobody has the right of veto."

However he admitted that Egypt "is not as stable as I would like", while stressing this was a "personal point of view" and had "nothing to do with any possible transaction over submarines."