Merz Warns U.S.-Germany Security Ties Are Shifting

Chancellor Friedrich Merz said in his New Year’s Eve address that Germany’s eight-decade security partnership with the United States is “changing,” and that Europe must do more to protect itself. Mr. Merz’s remarks, delivered Dec. 31, 2025, followed signals from the Trump administration that it no longer regards Europe’s defense as a core American priority.

He did not spell out exactly how the relationship was changing. In early December, the administration published a new national security strategy that urged European countries to take “primary responsibility” for their own defense, encouraged alignment with “patriotic European parties,” and criticized centrist institutions.

Pointing to Russian aggression and other threats, Mr. Merz said Europe must “defend and assert our interests much more strongly by ourselves.” He warned that “Russia’s aggression was and is part of a plan targeted against the whole of Europe” and said Germany faces “sabotage, espionage and cyberattacks on a daily basis.” The chancellor noted recent German steps to prepare for greater security risks: the removal of constitutional limits on military spending and an initiative to increase the number of soldiers by nearly 50 percent over the next decade.

Trying to reassure the public, Mr. Merz said, “We are not the victims of extraneous circumstances. We are not at the mercy of great powers.

Key Topics

World, Germany, United States, Defense, Europe, Merz