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Germany's incoming Chancellor considers the heated confrontation between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and US counterpart Donald Trump in the Oval Office last week to be a "deliberate escalation" engineered by the latter.
In scenes that stunned and shocked politicians across Europe, Zelensky was mocked and belittled by Trump and Vice President JD Vance, who accused him of not doing enough to end Moscow's full-scale invasion and of being ungrateful for American aid.
Zelensky, who had traveled to Washington to sign a minerals deal with the US and seek Trump's support for Kiev, was kicked out of the White House and forced to return home empty-handed.
But the brawl was an ambush planned in advance by the Americans, claimed Friedrich Merz, the leader of Germany's conservatives and almost certainly the country's next chancellor after his party won a majority in last month's national elections.
"In my opinion, it was not a spontaneous reaction to what Zelensky was saying, but definitely a deliberate escalation in this meeting in the Oval Office," Merz said, according to German media.
He added that "what we have seen in Washington is a continuation of a series of events in recent weeks, including the appearance of the American delegation in Munich at the security conference."
The German politician appeared to be referring to Vance's fiery speech at the Munich Security Conference last month, in which he called on Europe to "step up" and manage its own defense rather than rely on American security guarantees.
However, Merz said he was "somewhat surprised" by the White House's tough stance and added that the "mutual tone" was not "helpful."
The most important thing is “that we do everything we can to keep Americans in Europe,” he said. Trump and his defense chief Pete Hegseth have warned that Europe can no longer rely on the postwar transatlantic alliance or on US troops stationed on the continent to guarantee security.
Merz was one of dozens of European leaders who reaffirmed their support for Zelensky after his clash with Trump.
"Dear Volodymyr, we stand with Ukraine in good times and in times of trial. We must never confuse aggressor and victim in this terrible war," Merz wrote on X.
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