Germany’s Merz vows European independence from US amid political shake-up

The favourite to be Germany’s new chancellor, Friedrich Merz, has called for Europe to achieve independence from the United States, following his conservative CDU party’s victory in Sunday’s elections.

Merz, a traditional conservative without prior government experience, is set to lead Europe’s largest economy, after his Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and its sister party secured 28.6% of the vote, according to preliminary official results.

“Let’s get the party started,” the 69-year-old leader told supporters in Berlin, signaling his readiness for coalition negotiations amid escalating concerns over US-Europe relations under President Donald Trump.

A notable political shift emerged as the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) surged to an unprecedented 20.8%, making it the second-largest party. Despite this, AfD remains excluded from government participation due to a long-standing “firewall” arrangement among other parties. Meanwhile, Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s Social Democratic Party (SPD) suffered a historic defeat, plummeting to 16.4%, a sharp decline from 25.7% in 2021.

At a roundtable event on Sunday, Merz underscored his urgency in strengthening Europe’s autonomy following Trump’s recent comments, stating, “At the very least, after Donald Trump’s statements last week, it is clear that the Americans… are largely indifferent to the fate of Europe.”

The election also saw tensions rise over Trump’s exclusion of Kyiv and European leaders from peace talks with Russia, as well as Elon Musk’s alleged interference in the German election campaign.

“We are under massive pressure from two sides,” Merz declared, emphasizing his top priority of forging unity in Europe.