German Chancellor: Parts of US security strategy unacceptable.
German Chancellor Friedrich Mertz said on Tuesday that parts of the new US national security strategy unveiled last week were unacceptable to his country.
Mertz said the document largely confirmed his previous view: “We in Europe, and especially in Germany, need to distance ourselves more from the US in our security policy and become more independent.”
“But some other things are unacceptable to us in Europe,” he added. “I don’t see any need for the Americans to save democracy in Europe now. If our democracy needs saving, we can do it ourselves.”
The German chancellor also said the document was essentially nothing new and largely repeated points made by Trump’s vice president, J.D. Vance, at the Munich Security Conference in February.
In that speech, Vance accused Germany and other European countries of restricting freedom of speech and marginalizing opposition parties.
The new US national security strategy has also accused European governments of undermining political freedoms and restricting freedom of expression. Mertz called these assessments inaccurate and far from the political realities of the European continent.
He concluded by emphasizing that this new approach by Washington has made it clearer than ever before the need for greater European independence in the field of security and defense.