German Chancellor Friedrich Merz as he delivers a speech at the annual reception of stock exchange operator Deutsche Boerse in Eschborn, western Germany, on February 2, 2026. PHOTO: Kirill KUDRYAVTSEV / AFP / Profimedia
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz insisted on Monday on the need for increased autonomy of the European Union vis-à-vis the United States in strategic sectors, reports AFP.
“We need to become more sovereign and independent, especially technologically. And yes, this also applies to the United States of America,” Friedrich Merz said at the annual reception of stock exchange operator Deutsche Börse in Eschborn, near Frankfurt.
Because “we have to recognize that transatlantic relations have changed”, “but nostalgia and the memory of the past do not help us”, emphasized the federal chancellor.
These statements come after the recent conflict with the United States over Greenland, which represented “a strategic wake-up call” for Europe, according to French President Emmanuel Macron.
In recent decades, “we have squandered enormous growth potential in Europe through late reforms, unnecessary restrictions on corporate initiative and excessive regulation,” Merz continued.
According to the Conservative leader, Europeans “are no longer as economically strong as they could be”.
Merz also highlighted the opportunities that exist: “All around us there are emerging states, mostly democratic, with expanding markets, which are explicitly looking for what we Europeans have to offer.”
Alluding to the treaty with the countries of the South American bloc Mercosur, whose adoption in Europe is delayed, the German chancellor pleaded for “partnerships based on mutual consideration, mutual respect and respect for rules and reliability”.
Merz believes that Germany is in a position to “become the center of a dynamic and agile network of sovereign states that continue to bet, for the good of all, on multilateralism and free trade.”
He also emphasized that, on his initiative, the European Council will meet next week for “an extraordinary summit, or rather an informal meeting”, during which “we want to discuss together new measures to strengthen European competitiveness”.
