Friedrich Merz, the CDU leader, offered high praise to US President Donald Trump following the NATO summit in Ankara, noting that the American president displayed a surprisingly constructive role during the deliberations. Merz highlighted that Trump participated in the discussions without exception throughout the entire event, remained in the meeting room until the conclusion, and paid close attention to the representatives of the smaller NATO member states.
Merz expressed particular surprise regarding Trump’s concluding remarks, mentioning that the US President had spoken of “a feeling of love in the air.” He added that this phrase personally surprised him but also pleased him greatly, viewing it as a conciliatory end to an otherwise challenging summit.
Overall, Merz described the meeting positively. While stressing NATO remains firmly rooted in the transatlantic framework, he stated that the alliance is “European more than ever.” Merz outlined the goal for the future: Europe needs to assume a greater responsibility for its own defense without detaching itself from its alliance with the United States. The aim, he explained, is to distribute the burdens within the alliance more equitably and strengthen NATO as a whole.
Merz also commented on some of Trump’s past critiques of individual allies. He noted that during the summit, the US President explicitly acknowledged Spain’s efforts during the discussions. Despite Trump sometimes speaking harshly publicly, Merz observed that he multiple times commended the increased defense spending of European partners during the meetings.
The CDU leader defended Europe’s increasing commitment to defense. He asserted that the period when Europe benefited from American security capabilities without contributing adequately was over. “The free-riding of Europeans has now ended,” the Chancellor stated. He emphasized that Europe is increasing its defense efforts for its own security interests, not merely to favor the United States.
