German leader rips Trump for 'rupture' between US and Europe
Friday, February 13, 2026
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German Chancellor Friedrich Merz criticized Trump's policies at the 2026 Munich Security Conference, stating that the US' role as a world leader "has been challenged, and possibly squandered" and that a "divide has opened up between Europe and the United States".
Merz warned that "the culture war of the MAGA movement is not ours" and emphasized the importance of NATO, saying "being a part of NATO is not only Europe's competitive advantage, it is also the United States' competitive advantage", echoing former US President Joe Biden's NATO-related arguments.
According to The New York Times' Jim Tankersley, Merz's speech was a "declaration of a new German strategy for Europe in a radically changed world order", with German officials suggesting that the chancellor had chosen his words carefully to convey a strong message to the US, as reported in a Foreign Affairs article published concurrently with his speech.
