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Bloomberg
4 days ago
- Business
- Bloomberg
Merz Emerges Unscathed From Oval Office Talks
Welcome to the Brussels Edition, Bloomberg's daily briefing on what matters most in the heart of the European Union. 'A very good man to deal with' and 'a very great representative of Germany' were among the words of praise US President Donald Trump heaped on Friedrich Merz during the German chancellor's visit to the White House yesterday. Merz had clearly heeded advice from a number of European counterparts that he should let Trump do the talking, and can breathe a sigh of relief that he avoided the kind of public humiliation meted out to others in the Oval Office. The talks had carried a high degree of risk, with Merz determined to lobby the president on key issues for the EU, including the transatlantic trade conflict, Europe's security architecture and support for Ukraine. With just weeks until the US's threatened 50% tariff on nearly all EU goods is set to take effect, Trump sounded a positive note: 'I think all we want is just going to have a good relationship. The rest will just sort of follow very easily. We'll have a good trade deal.'
Japan Times
5 days ago
- Business
- Japan Times
Germany's Merz lets Trump do the talking and survives Oval Office meeting
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz successfully navigated a 40-minute meeting with Donald Trump in the Oval Office without falling victim to the public humiliation the American president has doled out to other leaders — even though both Germany and Europe are two of Trump's perpetual irritants. Merz heeded the advice from a number of European leaders that he should let Trump do most of the talking, and when he did talk, to praise the president. Merz faded into the background for much of the meeting, breaking his silence to say that Germany owes "the Americans a lot.' Merz's meeting with Trump was a high-risk move to try to lobby the president on several existential issues for the European Union: the brewing transatlantic trade conflict, the continent's security architecture and the upcoming NATO summit and how to continue support for Ukraine.
