German chancellor says era of unconditional US friendship is ‘probably over’

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has said the era of unconditional friendship between Germany and the United States is probably coming to an end, pointing to a profound shift in transatlantic relations under US President Donald Trump.

“This era of unconditional transatlantic friendship is probably over for the foreseeable future,” Merz told fellow members of his Christian Democratic Union (CDU) at the party’s headquarters in Berlin on Thursday.

Merz said the change reflected a broader shift in Washington’s political outlook and its approach to the transatlantic alliance.

“On the other side of the Atlantic, we are seeing a change in political attitudes, a change in the assessment of the transatlantic alliance, which we might not have thought possible,” he said.

Speaking ahead of Sunday’s Berlin state election, Merz contrasted the current state of US-German relations with earlier decades, recalling visits to Berlin by American presidents John F. Kennedy and Ronald Reagan and their famous speeches in the German capital.

“It was long overdue that we now take more responsibility for ourselves,” Merz told CDU members.

Merz’s remarks came hours after he spoke by telephone with Trump.

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His statement underscored the tensions that have increasingly marked relations between Berlin and Washington since Trump returned to the White House in January 2025.

Trump has repeatedly threatened US trading partners, including European allies, with steep tariffs while continuing to criticize European immigration policies.

He has also revived his proposal to acquire Greenland, a self-governing territory of Denmark, despite opposition from Copenhagen and other European governments.

Trump has additionally praised the electoral gains of Germany’s far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD), prompting Merz to warn the US president against interfering in German domestic politics.

The Trump administration has also provided around $5 million in financial assistance for projects in Europe that it says are aimed at strengthening democratic resilience, the rule of law, freedom of speech and the press, and human rights.

Merz’s remarks echo those made by then-chancellor Angela Merkel in May 2017, during Trump’s first term.

Speaking at a campaign rally, Merkel said that the post-World War II international order could no longer be relied upon in the same way and that Europeans needed to take greater responsibility for their own affairs.

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