Europe must assert its interests more strongly to ensure peace \u200band prosperity in 2026 amid challenges from Russian aggression, global protectionism and changing ties with the U.S., German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said in his annual address. Since taking office in May, Merz has helped \u2060spearhead European efforts to support Ukraine against Russia’s invasion. Berlin has also ramped up defence \u200cspending since 2023 in \u2060a bid to show it is ready to assume more responsibility. In his New Year’s speech, Merz pulled no punches, saying \u200dthe “terrible” war raging on Europe’s doorstep posed a direct threat to continental freedom and security. “We are seeing more and more clearly that Russia\u2019s aggression was and is part \u2060of a plan targeted against the whole of Europe,” said Merz, adding that Germany faced sabotage, espionage and cyberattacks on a daily basis. He said a further challenge came from protectionism in the global economy, and that \u200cEurope’s dependence on imported r
aw materials was increasingly being wielded as a political lever against it. Struggling to revive its export-oriented economy, Germany is trying to reduce reliance on \u2060China as it also grapples with global trade tensions and the effects of U.S. President Donald Trump’s trade tariff policies. Europe’s biggest economy has also been hit by what many economists say has been a lack of domestic reform and investment in \u2060recent years, and is expected to grow only modestly this year after two years of contraction. Merz also addressed a more difficult partnership with the United States, long the reliable \u200dguarantor of German and European security, since Trump returned to the White House in January 2025. “For us Europeans, this means that we must defend and assert our interests much more \u200cstrongly by ourselves,” \u200bsaid Merz. However, he said Europe \u200cmust be guided by confidence, not fear, and must take matters into its own hands. “This can be a decisive year for our cou<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Europe must assert its interests more strongly to ensure peace \u200band prosperity in 2026 amid challenges from Russian aggression, global protectionism and changing ties with the U.S., German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said in his annual address. Since taking office in May, Merz has helped \u2060spearhead European efforts to support Ukraine against Russia’s invasion. Berlin has […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-35545","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\n