German Chancellor Merz Says Post-WWII Friendship with US Has Ended

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has declared that the post-World War II friendship between Germany and the United States has come to an end, according to a Bloomberg report. Merz attributed the rupture to escalating tensions between Berlin and Washington and to former U.S. President Donald Trump’s threats to impose new tariffs on the European Union.

"On the other side of the Atlantic we observe a change in political views, a change in attitude towards the transatlantic alliance, which until recently might have seemed impossible to us," Merz said, summarizing a shift he sees as fundamental.

The chancellor’s assessment aligns with a broader pattern in Trump’s approach to allies. In recent months, Trump has accused South Korea of ingratitude for refusing to back the U.S. on Iran, and he has claimed that Denmark granted the United States permanent security control over Greenland — moves that illustrate a transactional view of partnerships. Those episodes reinforce Merz’s point that the U.S. political outlook has changed in ways that challenge the foundations of the transatlantic partnership.

Bloomberg noted that Merz’s statement signals a potential reorientation of German foreign policy amid growing uncertainty over American commitments. European capitals are now weighing responses to proposed U.S. trade measures and questioning the reliability of long-standing security guarantees.