Speaking at a Catholic youth conference in Würzburg, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz delivered a remarkably candid assessment of the United States. The conservative leader — long considered a transatlantic ally — said he would no longer recommend America as a destination for his children to study or work.
“I am a great admirer of America,” Merz told the audience. “At the moment my admiration is not growing.”
Merz cited what he described as a deeply polarized “social climate” and noted that even highly educated Americans are increasingly struggling to find employment. The remarks reflect a growing unease across European capitals about the trajectory of American society and politics — a sentiment that would have been nearly unthinkable from a German chancellor of Merz’s ideological stripe just a few years ago.
Meanwhile, Western military analysts and experts are now openly discussing a potential “de facto end” to the war in Ukraine, with some attributing a decisive role to a possible Trump defeat in the upcoming US midterm elections — a scenario that would further reshape the transatlantic relationship.
