German Chancellor Merz made a rare criticism of U.S. President Trump, saying that under Trump's leadership, America's global leadership has 'been challenged, and may even have been completely lost,' warning that the rules-based world order 'no longer exists.'
According to comprehensive reports from The New York Times and the BBC, Merz, in his keynote speech at the annual Munich Security Conference on the 13th, repeatedly called Americans 'friends' and explained why the U.S. and Europe must still be partners for each other.
But he also listed how Trump's policies have deviated from the values that Germany and other European countries once believed they shared with the United States, including opposing hate speech, addressing climate change, and supporting free trade.
Merz told attending leaders that in the era of great power politics, 'our freedom cannot be guaranteed,' and Europeans must be prepared for 'sacrifice.'
He said: 'A gulf has appeared between Europe and the United States. At last year’s Munich Security Conference, U.S. Vice President Vance made this very clear in public. He was right. The culture war of the “Make America Great Again” movement does not belong to us.'
Before concluding his speech, Merz suddenly switched to English, speaking directly to the Trump administration.
He said: 'In an era of great power competition, even a nation as large as the United States cannot go it alone. Dear friends, being a member of NATO is not only Europe’s competitive advantage—it is also America’s competitive advantage.'