“Europe is our life insurance,” said the former chancellor and, ahead of his return to the White House, stressed the need for Europeans to respond to this “special” president by remaining united.
Donald Trump “defends the legitimate interests of the US, but in the context of multilateral cooperation, he does not believe in win-win situations. He believes there is always a winner and a loser.”
“We won’t change him, but we can react”
“We won’t change Donald Trump, but we can react to him. She must unite her interests,” Mrs Merkel said at a pre-election event of the state organization of the Christian Democratic Party (CDU) of North Rhine-Westphalia in Düsseldorf.
For the US, however, said the former chancellor, who had worked with Donald Trump during his previous term, the advice not to look for allies in Europe would not be correct. We are a strong factor.
“Europe is our life insurance,” added Mrs. Merkel and highlighted the importance of the transatlantic partnership, especially on the issue of Ukraine.
“Without the support of the US and NATO, Ukraine would not have been able to remain an independent state after the Russian attack. The transatlantic relationship is today even more necessary than before. With the attack on Ukraine, the fundamental principle of the European post-war order, the inviolability of borders, has become ineffective and only with the US and within NATO can it be ensured that (Vladimir) Putin does not win the war and Ukraine remains independent state”, emphasized Angela Merkel.
