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Chancellor Friedrich Merz, delivered a major foreign policy address declaring that European partners are "not subordinates" to the United States and stated Germany would not join a proposed "Board of Peace" initiative from Trump. Domestically, Merz faces pressure from within his party to soften his stance against cooperating with the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD). The AfD is campaigning to win control of a state government in Saxony-Anhalt, where it leads in polls, though its radical program has led other major parties to rule out cooperation. The party is also contending with internal controversy after some politicians were linked to a meeting with far-right Austrian activist Martin Sellner, prompting public distancing from his "remigration" concept and the blocking of a related event.
In international engagements, Merz met with Italy's leader, Giorgia Meloni, in Rome, where they emphasized a shared "pragmatic, non-instinctive" approach to dealing with the U.S. under Trump. Germany also publicly warned the United States against any plans to annex Greenland, stating such a move would violate sovereignty and damage NATO. Merz made his first official state visit to India, meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi to boost economic and defense cooperation. On European matters, Merz rejected Ukraine's request for a concrete fast-tracked EU membership timeline, emphasizing new members should be "partners, not subordinates," and is seeking new EU alliances, signaling a potential pivot from the traditional Franco-German axis. Separately, Merz's suggestion that the EU rebalance its relationship with Russia prompted a threatening statement from Russian official Dmitry Medvedev, which Germany condemned.
2 topics | 89 sources
Chancellor Friedrich Merz, said Europe is entering a new era of great power politics and must learn to speak the 'language of power' rather than act as subordinates to the United States. He made these comments after meeting with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, where they agreed on a pragmatic approach to dealing with a potential second Trump administration. Merz also said Germany would not join a proposed 'Board of Peace' from Trump and warned that great power politics is making the world a dangerous place. Domestically, he is under pressure from some in his party to ease a political 'firewall' against working with Germany's far-right Alternative for Germany party.
The Alternative for Germany (AfD) party is proposing to create a new police unit specifically for deportations, modeled on the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency. The proposal comes from the party's branch in Bavaria. At the same time, the party is dealing with internal disagreements. Some AfD members, including politician Maximilian Krah, have distanced themselves from the term 'remigration'. The party also blocked an event in Brandenburg that was to feature Martin Sellner, a right-wing activist. In regional politics, the AfD is performing strongly in Saxony-Anhalt, where it has published a government program, while other parties like the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) have ruled out cooperating with it.
6 topics | 109 sources
Jan 29
Germany warns the United States against trying to take over GreenlandGerman officials have issued a series of warnings to the United States, urging it to respect Greenland's sovereignty and not attempt to annex the territory. This comes after comments from President Donald Trump, who has previously expressed interest in buying Greenland and recently said the U.S. 'saved' it during World War II. German leaders, including the defense minister and other politicians, have stated that any U.S. move to take Greenland would be considered 'blackmail' and could seriously damage the NATO alliance. They have pledged to increase Germany's own role in the region and called for de-escalation ahead of international meetings.