German Foreign Minister Opposes Europe's Separation from the United States

SadaNews - German Foreign Minister Johan Wadephol expressed his opposition to Europe completely distancing itself from the United States.

The minister stated in remarks to German television's second channel, "ZDF", that Europe needs to make greater efforts to become more independent and sovereign, but not in a way that implies actual independence from the United States. He added, "That would be a separation; no one wants that, and it is also unnecessary."

Wadephol believes that discussions should not be framed around either/or choices. He said, "Let us have a discussion where we candidly state what we can and should do more in Europe, and on the other hand, what the United States represents for us... It is a reliable alliance."

Wadephol noted that the United States is fully integrated into NATO, stating, "Without the United States, we would not have sufficient defensive capacity for Europe, neither nuclear nor conventional, nor in terms of intelligence and its operations... This must be said frankly." Recently, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz called at the Munich Security Conference for a relaunch of transatlantic relations with the United States through a strong and largely independent European pillar.

Wadephol indicated that the United States, together with Europe, seeks to strengthen the defense alliance also in the face of future challenges, adding that this was also the outstretched hand from U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio during the Munich Security Conference, "which, in my view, we should grasp," indicating the United States' willingness to work together with Europe, while clarifying that "this requires us to be able to act, and for that, we also need to invest money" and proceed with some other measures.