U.S. President Donald Trump will host German Chancellor Friedrich Merz at the White House on Tuesday. The discussion will range sensitive matters from the U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran to Trump’s new tariff threats and the German leader’s recent visit to China.
Merz left Berlin for Washington as Germany and France announced plans to deepen cooperation on nuclear deterrence, another move by the European neighbors to adapt to changes in the transatlantic relationship amid ongoing threats from Russia and feared instability linked to the Iran conflict.
Germany-U.S. Ties
Merz, only recently having met Chinese President Xi Jinping, now aims to maintain the positive relationship he has forged with Trump over the past year, aided by Germany’s decision to increase defence spending.
But that will require delicate diplomacy given European concerns over the legality of the Iran strikes under international law, and increasing worries over Trump’s threat to pile on fresh tariffs on global goods.
Merz will be the first European leader to visit Washington in the aftermath of the Iran strikes—which have blocked most of the world’s key oil shipping lanes and thrown global air transport into chaos—and the Supreme Court’s recent ruling that rendered Trump’s emergency tariffs illegal.
On Sunday, Merz expressed no criticism of the U.S. airstrikes but did not endorse the operation, which Trump’s critics claim was undertaken without sufficient evidence and the required legal backing of international law.
“We recognise the dilemma,” he said, explaining that repeated attempts over the past decades had not put Iran off trying to acquire nuclear weapons or oppressing its own people. “So, we’re not going to be lecturing our partners on their military strikes against Iran.”
Merz’s China Visit
Jeff Rathke, president of the American-German Institute, a Washington-based think tank, said the Trump administration did not expect much from the meeting, and no major investment announcements are on the horizon.
“It makes it inevitable that the U.S. and Israeli attacks in Iran will be more of a focal point,” which could prove risky for Merz, Rathke said. “He might be asked directly whether Germany supports the U.S. and whether Germany would provide material support to the U.S. campaign, if asked.”
Charles Lichfield, director of the economic analysis at the Atlantic Council’s GeoEconomics Centre, said Trump is likely to question Merz regarding his China trip and to gather details ahead of Trump’s own visit in April.
Merz may also use his trip to press for details on Trump’s plan for what to do next on Iran, said Julianne Smith, who served as U.S. ambassador to NATO under former President Joe Biden.
(With inputs from Reuters)
