Chancellor of Germany Friedrich Merz acknowledges that European powers were enjoying the benefits of U.S. military power without meaningfully contributing to their own defense.
The BBC’s Today program published an interview with the German leader on Friday in which he was asked if President Donald Trump was “indifferent” to the fate of Europe. Merz stopped short of saying Trump is indifferent, but said the leader is “not as clear and as committed as former U.S. presidents.”
“We are all looking for more [independence] from American defense. We know that we have to do more on our own,” Merz admitted. “We have been free riders in the past, and the Americans guaranteed our freedom and our security.”
He continued, “Understandably, they are not willing to do that any longer, and they are asking us to do more. And we are doing more.”
The German chancellor made the comments while in the United Kingdom to strengthen military cooperation between the two nations.
He joined British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Thursday in signing the Kensington Treaty, an accord compelling the countries to “assist one another, including by military means, in case of an armed attack on the other.”
The document also included a hodgepodge of non-military agreements, such as commitments to combating illegal immigration, closer collaboration on joint trade ventures, and simplified visas for exchange students.
European nations are scrambling to establish and reaffirm defense agreements following Trump’s mercurial treatment of the old continent. The president has long accused the Europeans of “ripping off” the United States.
The White House is currently weighing a 30% tariff on goods from the European Union. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt claims European governments are working with the administration to find “ways to lower their tariff and their non-tariff barriers that we have long said harm our workers and our companies” ahead of Trump’s Aug. 1 deadline.
Merz attributed the White House’s pivot away from Europe to growing concerns in East Asia, specifically the People’s Republic of China.
Many of Trump’s closest allies have alluded to the Chinese Communist Party as the ultimate long-term enemy against U.S. interests. Vice President JD Vance previously called China the “biggest threat to our country.”
“I am observing that the Americans have, for years now, have been moving away from Europe and turning to Asia,” Merz said. “This … pivot to Asia is happening, and there are other places in the world the Americans are interested in, and they are seeing themselves in a very hard competition with China.”
“And that’s the reason why they are telling us, ‘Take care for your own,’ and we are doing it,” he added.
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Last month, Trump negotiated an agreement with other North Atlantic Treaty Organization member countries to require at least 5% of each nation’s GDP to be spent on defense and national security.
The first 3.5% of that spending is intended for conventional military expenses such as personnel, artillery, and air defense. The other 1.5% is intended for infrastructure and cybersecurity.