Germany’s Merz plays down suggestions of clash with Trump, says they had ‘constructive’ call
Asked about Trump’s comments about his recent calls with Europeans, Merz plays down the tensions between the two sides.
He says they had “a very detailed conversation” discussing some proposals, with the focus on “what territorial concessions Ukraine is prepared to make.”
But Merz said “it was a question that … the Ukrainian president and the Ukrainian people must answer.”
He says that if the talks progress as he expects them to, there will be further conversations with US officials over the weekend, and then “possibly a meeting here in Berlin beginning of next week,” which could see US participation.
But he says that overall Trump gave the impression that “he is prepared to go down this path with us,” and that the US president “knows that the Europeans must also be heard.”
He calls the call “constructive” with both sides showing “mutual respect.”
Key events
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‘If you want to know Russia’s actions, listen to what it accuses others of,’ German minister says
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No reason to doubt US commitment to Nato, Merz and Rutte say
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Germany’s Merz plays down suggestions of clash with Trump, says they had ‘constructive’ call
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Morning opening: Strong words, but what’s next?
‘If you want to know Russia’s actions, listen to what it accuses others of,’ German minister says
German foreign minister Johann Wadephul is now speaking at the Munich Security Conference’s Berlin event, where he appears alongside Nato’s Mark Rutte.
He does not mince his words about Russia.
He says that “if you want to know Russia’s actions, listen to what it accuses others of.”
“We all get used to constant Russian lament about supposed western plots to influence the Russian society. In reality, of course, it is Russia that is spending millions of dollars subverting democratic processes around the world,” he says.
He says that “when Putin tells Russian media his country is not planning to fight European countries, but if Europe were to start a war, he is in, I quote, ‘ready right now,’ we should all be worried.”
“Russian hybrid actions are already targeting us in Europe as we speak,” he adds, mentioning attacks on logistics hubs, and drone appearances across Europe.
“These actions are calling for an adequate response,” he says.
He says that European partners “need to urgently step up” its defence work.
On Ukraine, Wadephul says “we are yet to see meaningful Russian readiness to negotiate.”
“The Russian position today seems to almost boil down to if we don’t get for free, what we couldn’t get during 11 years of fighting, we won’t even talk,” he says.
“That is not a serious negotiation position, but it is a potent reminder that this war would probably only end when Putin feels that the consequences of continuing it having become too painful to get there,” he adds.
The minister says Europe should increase pressure on Moscow and maintain cohesion within Nato, including with the US.
Austrian parliament passes controversial school headscarf ban
Meanwhile over in Austria, the country’s lawmakers approved a law banning headscarves in schools for girls under 14, AFP reported, a move rights groups and experts say is discriminatory and could deepen society divisions.
The conservative-led government – under pressure from rising anti-migration sentiment – proposed the ban this year, arguing it is to protect girls “from oppression”.
The opposition Green party voted against the ban saying it was unconstitutional.
The European Commission also got asked about the reported “extended” version of the US national security strategy, which it was reported in the press identified a few EU countries – including Italy, Austria and Poland – as “targets” to weaken its links with the EU.
But the commission is not keen to offer a comment on this issue either.
Chief spokesperson Paula Pinho says:
“We’ve read in the press, actually, about, this alleged extended version of the national security strategy. [As] it’s through the press, we have no information of any official document in the sense. Therefore you will understand that, indeed, there’s nothing that we can be saying about it.”
The European Commission has also been just asked about the latest on the EU reparations loan for Ukraine.
The top line is that “discussions are taking place as we speak with all member states with where all questions, can be asked and are being replied,” with the commission confident about its legal analysis.
The key European Council summit where a decision on the proposal will need to be taken is next week.
Meanwhile, we are about to hear from Nobel peace prize winner María Corina Machado again as she’s about to take stage in Oslo at a Nobel committee press conference.
You can watch it live here:
Jakub Krupa
I’m watching the European Commission’s daily press briefing, and they repeatedly declined to comment on the reported US proposals to screen social media of foreign visitors to the country.
One to watch, I suppose.
‘At last, we are not fighting against it alone,’ Orbán says as he welcomes US criticism of EU’s ‘civilisational-scale decline’
But Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orbán offered his full backing for the US criticism of the EU in recent days, saying that it captured well “the civilisational-scale decline that we in Hungary have been fighting against for fifteen years.”
In a post on X, he said that the new US national security strategy was “the most important and most interesting document of recent years,” as it “speaks about Brussels in the same tone that the Biden administration and Brussels used when speaking about us – what goes around comes around.”
“The Americans also see that Europe has hit the wall of a long economic dead end. A weak ally cannot defend itself and cannot be relied upon in international affairs either. They see Europe’s civilisational crisis as well. They see that Europe’s civilisational values, democracy, and the free market are all in danger,” he said.
Orbán also said that the US position noticed that “European liberals have burned the network of relations that once existed with Russia, which was a mistake.”
“In summary: America has a precise understanding of Europe’s decline. They see the civilisational-scale decline that we in Hungary have been fighting against for fifteen years. At last, we are not fighting against it alone,” he said.
Merz also gets asked about his recent suggestion that the US should at least have a good relationship with Germany, if not with the EU.
He explains what he meant by saying that the US administration “obviously has great difficulty understanding the European Union as a union of states,” which he says he can understand that as the set up is fairly unique globally.
He says that if the US finds it difficult to deal with the EU, Germany is always ready to step in as a mediator, using its longstanding close relations with the US.
And that ends the press conference.
No reason to doubt US commitment to Nato, Merz and Rutte say
Asked about the recent noises from the US, Merz says he has “no reason to doubt the agreements we have made with the US within the Nato alliance.”
He says that the US national security strategy’s language on Nato shows clear commitment.
In other areas, the US government is more critical, he concedes, and says that Germany will have to analyse it.
But he generally says that “we know we must do much more for our security than in the past.”
Nato’s Rutte strikes a similar tone, as he says the US NSS “clearly states that the US is committed to Europe, to keep Europe safe,” and he says it’s clear that European countries are “stepping up.”
Merz also gets asked about the use of frozen assets to fund Ukraine, and he praises the EU’s proposal on this and points to next week’s European Council summit as the key moment, but signals – once again – Germany’s backing for the proposal.
Germany’s Merz plays down suggestions of clash with Trump, says they had ‘constructive’ call
Asked about Trump’s comments about his recent calls with Europeans, Merz plays down the tensions between the two sides.
He says they had “a very detailed conversation” discussing some proposals, with the focus on “what territorial concessions Ukraine is prepared to make.”
But Merz said “it was a question that … the Ukrainian president and the Ukrainian people must answer.”
He says that if the talks progress as he expects them to, there will be further conversations with US officials over the weekend, and then “possibly a meeting here in Berlin beginning of next week,” which could see US participation.
But he says that overall Trump gave the impression that “he is prepared to go down this path with us,” and that the US president “knows that the Europeans must also be heard.”
He calls the call “constructive” with both sides showing “mutual respect.”
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