Germany’s Merz Urges Trump to Pressure Russia During White House Visit
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz met with U.S. President Donald Trump in the Oval Office on June 5, urging stronger American pressure on Russia to help end the war against Ukraine, The Gaze reports, citing DW.
When the conversation turned to Ukraine, Trump repeated his claim that the war “would have never happened” if he had been president.
Merz said he hoped Germany and the United States could cooperate on ending the war: “I am here to talk about how we could contribute to that goal … we are looking for measures and instruments to bring this war to an end.”
Referring to the D-Day anniversary, Merz said: “May I remind you tomorrow is June 6, the D-Day anniversary when the Americans once ended a war in Europe. In the long run, this was the liberation of my country from Nazi dictatorship … We know what we owe you.”
He added: “America is again in a very strong position to do something on ending this war, so let’s talk about doing what we can. We are looking for more pressure on Russia, we should talk about that.”
Trump, whose past remarks about Russian President Vladimir Putin and criticism of Ukrainian leadership have raised concerns in Europe, described the war in Ukraine as “a bloodbath.” He compared it to “children fighting on a schoolyard” and said:
“Maybe there will be more fighting before they are able to be pulled apart.”
He denied being aligned with Russia: “If I see Russia’s out of line, you’ll see how tough … They like to say I am friends with Russia, I am not friends with anybody, I am friends with you,” he told Merz. “I want the right thing to happen for everybody.”
Merz emphasized shared goals: “I am for stopping killing … I think we both agree on how terrible this war is, we are both looking for ways to stop it very soon.”
He concluded: “I told the president that he is the key person in the world who can do that by putting pressure on Russia. I think we have the duty to do something on that now to stop it.”
Read more on The Gaze: Are Ukraine’s Allies Ready to Take Sanctions Against Russia to the Next Level in 2025?