Merkel: U.S. no longer reliable
After Trump meetings, German leader says Europe on its own
MUNICH — German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Sunday declared a new chapter in U.S.-European relations after contentious meetings with President Donald Trump last week, saying Europe “really must take our fate into our own hands.”
In the wake of Trump’s trip to visit leaders in the European Union, NATO and the Group of Seven, Merkel said the days when Europe could rely on others was “over to a certain extent. This is what I have experienced in the last few days.”
Merkel, who is seeking a fourth term in elections in September, made her comments at Munich in a packed Bavarian beer tent during a campaign event.
She did not mention Trump by name, and she also spoke of Britain’s decision to leave the European Union, a move seen as weakening trans-Atlantic ties and leaving Europe more exposed.
Merkel said Europe’s need to go it alone should be done “of course in friendship with the United States of America, in friendship with Great Britain and as good neighbors wherever that works.”
“We have to know that we must fight for our future on our own, for our destiny as Europeans,” Merkel said.
On Thursday, Trump had tough words for German trade behind closed doors. Hours later, he criticized European leaders at NATO for failing to spend enough on defense, while holding back from offering an unconditional guarantee for European security.
“The belief in shared values has been shattered by the Trump administration,” said Stephan Bierling, an expert on trans-Atlantic relations at Germany’s University of Regensburg. “After the inauguration, everyone in Europe was hopeful that Trump would become more moderate and take into account the positions of the G-7 and of NATO. But the opposite has happened. It’s as if he is still trying to win a campaign.”
Bierling said there was consensus among Germany’s political parties that the country can no longer consider the U.S. to be a reliable partner.
Ties with the U.S. and Britain are not the only international issue for Merkel. She also had to intervene this month with the Turkish president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, in Brussels to settle a dispute over visits to German troops stationed in Turkey.
But climate is a longtime concern for Merkel, who first made her mark in the 1990s shepherding an international accord on the environment. She worries about the future of the 2015 Paris Agreement that supporters say will address global warming.
At the G-7 summit of leaders of major world economies on Friday and Saturday, Trump refused to endorse the Paris Agreement, pledging to decide this week whether to abandon the accord. Trump’s administration has argued that U.S. emissions standards are tougher than those set by China, India and others, and therefore have put American businesses at a disadvantage.
Merkel said the G-7 discussion about climate “was very difficult, not to say unsatisfactory. There’s a situation where it’s six — if you count the European Union, seven — against one.”
“This is not just any old agreement, but it is a central agreement for shaping globalization,” she added.
Despite the Trump administration’s talk of an “America first” policy and ongoing criticism of Germany for its trade surplus, the G-7 leaders in Sicily did vow to fight protectionism, reiterating “a commitment to keep our markets open.”
They also agreed to step up pressure on North Korea, to forge closer cooperation in the fight against terrorism, and on the possibility of imposing more sanctions on Russia over their role in the conflict in Ukraine.
Trump on Sunday referred to those agreements, writing on Twitter, “Just returned from Europe. Trip was a great success for America. Hard work but big results!”