Divisions persist in Bulgaria hours before the EU decides whether country should adopt euro currency
Bulgaria is close to realizing its decades-old goal of joining the euro currency union and deepening ties with the more prosperous countries of Western Europe. But the government faces a populist backlash against the shared currency on the eve of a key decision by European Union authorities. (AP Video by Valentina Petrova)
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New German Chancellor Friedrich Merz is making a high-stakes trip to meet US President Donald Trump - his first time in Washington DC as the leader of the European Union's largest economy. Tariffs, defence spending and the war in Ukraine will be high on the agenda when Merz meets Donald Trump on Thursday at the White House. There's also speculation that Trump's team - which repeatedly has weighed in on Germany's domestic politics - could subject him to an Oval Office "ambush". It would not be the first time. Both South African President Cyril Ramaphosa and Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelensky found themselves in awkward, tense or even fiery exchanges as the world's cameras rolled, capturing every moment. Those moments have turned once cosy, diplomatic moments in the Oval Office into potentially fraught, tight-rope walks for visiting leaders. Ahead of the visit, Berlin expressed confidence that the German side is ready. 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Germany is the EU's largest exporter to the US, leaving the country's businesses are extremely agitated about any trade obstacles. Merz, a 69-year-old reputed millionaire with a corporate background, may feel confident about going toe-to-toe with Trump, who often hails himself as the consummate "dealmaker". Whether the Chancellor will be able to smooth the path for EU negotiators, however, remains to be seen. Constanze Stelzenmüller, an expert on German-US relations at the Brookings Institute, believes Merz's ability to push the negotiations along is limited, given that the EU as an institution has taken the lead on those talks. "Whatever Merz says is mood music, rather than being able to say that XYZ will happen, even if major nation states aren't without influence on the European Commission," she explained. "He has to tread a delicate line." 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While she believes a "Zelensky-style" Oval Office is unlikely, Stelzenmüller said a "worst case scenario" would be something more akin to the visit of Irish Prime Minister Micheál to the White House - an occasion promptly followed by a visit from his political foe, former UFC fighter Conor McGregor. Subsequent contact with the AfD or Alice Weidel, she added, would be seen as a provocation by Germany. "That would be DEFCON 1 for the bilateral," she said. Russia may attack Nato in next four years, German defence chief warns German chancellor promises to help Ukraine produce long-range weapons Germany decides to leave history in the past and prepare for war
