WITHIN HOURSof his party winning national elections,Friedrich Merz, Germany’s presumptive next leader, dropped a bombshell. Donald Trump “does not care much about the fate of Europe”, he said. The priority was to “step by step…achieve independence from theUSA”. This was not some distant aim. He was unsure, he said, whetherNATOwould still exist “in its current form” in June, when leaders are due to meet in the Netherlands, “or whether we will have to establish an independent European defence capability much more quickly”.
This article appeared in the International section of the print edition under the headline “Very well—alone”
Discover stories from this section and more in the list of contents
Sweden is banning OnlyFans content as the lines around sex work blur
It is meekly welcoming the new sheriff’s vigilante justice
The answer matters more than you think
Donald Trump prefers deals to regime change
After decades of rising secularism, Christianity is holding its ground—and gaining among the young