Little fanfare for Merkel’s short White House visit

WASHINGTON — This time, there were fewer hugs.

President Trump welcomed German Chancellor Angela Merkel to the White House on Friday for a visit of less than three hours. He greeted Merkel outside the West Wing with a handshake and a kiss on each cheek, a traditional welcome but far short of the bountiful display of personal warmth that was seen earlier in the week when he played host to French President Emmanuel Macron for a lavish three-day state visit.

Trump, in brief remarks alongside Merkel in the Oval Office, called her an “extraordinary woman,” congratulated her on her recent re-election and disputed any idea that their rapport was frosty.

“We have a really great relationship. We actually have had a great relationship from the beginning,” Trump said.

Though her visit will be short on pomp, Merkel’s message was similar to Macron’s — that America and Europe need to bury the hatchet on key issues, from global trade to international security.

In a joint news conference Friday afternoon, it was apparent that despite the back-toback visits, Trump’s divisions with Europe are still substantial.

Trump is widely expected to withdraw the U.S. from the Iran nuclear accord next month, despite pleas from Macron earlier this week and Merkel Friday. Merkel used her meeting with Trump to try to paper over the differences, calling the Obama-era agreement a “first step” toward curtailing and containing Iran’s regional ambitions and suggesting openness to a side agreement.

Trump has said he was open to new negotiations with Iran, but has not said whether he would heed European calls for the U.S. to stay in the deal, which aims to restrict Iran’s nuclear efforts, while those talks are under way. His decision is expected by May 12.

On trade, Merkel said there was little progress on seeking permanent exemptions for the EU from Trump’s steel and aluminum tariffs.

“The decision lies with the president,” she said.

Trump implicitly scolded Germany for not meeting its defense spending obligations to NATO, saying, it is “essential that our NATO allies increase their financial contribution,” to the pact.

Merkel said Germany’s latest budget will take defense spending to 1.3 percent of GDP. She acknowledged that’s far short of the 2 percent goal but said Germany is still aiming for that over time.

Anti-American sentiment has been growing again in Germany since Trump’s election, with mainstream media regularly portraying the U.S. president as a threat to the world.