Germany's Merz to brave Trump's oval office test
WASHINGTON - German Chancellor Friedrich Merz meets Mr Donald Trump in the Oval Office on June 5 , hoping to avoid one of the US president's infamous ambushes amid discord over Ukraine and tariffs.
A month into his job, the conservative Mr Merz, 69, will try to build a rapport with the mercurial Mr Trump as he seeks to maintain good ties with the country he considers post-war Germany's 'indispensable' ally.
He will offer pledges to sharply increase Germany's Nato spending and look for common ground on confronting Mr Vladimir Putin on Ukraine.
On Mr Trump's threat to hammer the European Union with sharply higher tariffs, Mr Merz, leader of the bloc's biggest economy, has argued that it must be self-confident in its negotiations with Washington.
But first Mr Merz must brave the televised rite of passage of an Oval Office meeting with Mr Trump – whose administration has taken an aggressive stance towards Germany and even backed the far-right there.
Mr Trump, 78, has delivered a series of public dressing downs to foreign leaders in the heart of the White House, from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to South Africa's Cyril Ramaphosa.
The New York Times reported that Mr Trump was set to confront Mr Merz over free speech issues in Germany – a bugbear the administration has repeatedly brought up with European leaders despite its own record.
Calmness and joy
Mr Merz told reporters in Washington ahead of the meeting that if Mr Trump brings up German domestic politics, he will 'state my opinion very clearly if necessary'.
Despite the tensions, Mr Merz said he was 'looking forward' to his first face-to-face meeting with Mr Trump.
'Our alliance with America was, is, and remains of paramount importance for the security, freedom, and prosperity of Europe,' he posted on X.
The German chancellor is believed to have studied videos of previous Oval Office ambushes and learned how to stay calm and let Mr Trump talk.
Mr Merz is approaching his Mr Trump meeting 'with great calmness and joy', his spokesman Stefan Kornelius said, pointing to their 'very good relationship' so far.
The two leaders – both with business backgrounds and keen golf players – are on first-name terms after several phone calls, Mr Kornelius said, and Mr Merz now has Mr Trump's cellphone number on speed dial.
But whatever the personal chemistry, the issues are potentially explosive.
Mr Trump has lashed out at Germany, and particularly its car industry, among the European nations he accuses of trying to 'screw' the United States.
The US president launched his 'Liberation Day' tariffs in April and the EU faces levies of 50 per cent.
Far-right support
On the Ukraine war, where Germany strongly backs Kyiv, Mr Merz will hope to convince Mr Trump to heighten pressure on Mr Putin through new sanctions to persuade him to agree to a ceasefire.
Mr Trump has expressed frustration with Mr Putin, but said sanctions could harm the chances of a truce.
Mr Merz's visit also comes ahead of a G7 summit in Canada on June 15 to 17 and a Nato meeting in The Hague at the end of the month.
Mr Merz has said Germany is willing to follow a plan to raise defense spending to 3.5 per cent of GDP over coming years, with another 1.5 per cent dedicated to security-related infrastructure.
But a major potential flashpoint is the vocal support Mr Trump and some in his administration have given to the far-right and anti-immigration Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, which came second in February elections.
US Vice-President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and former Trump adviser Elon Musk have all weighed in in support of the AfD, which in Germany is shunned by all other political parties.
When Germany's domestic intelligence service recently designated the AfD a 'right-wing extremist' group, Mr Rubio denounced the step as 'tyranny in disguise'.
Mr Merz at the time told the US government to 'largely stay out of' German domestic politics.
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