Published On 9/5/2026
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz expressed, on Saturday, Europe’s desire to maintain the continuity of the work of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), despite the differences with the United States due to the Iran war.
Merz said in a press conference with Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson that he really wants to keep this alliance alive for the future.
The German Chancellor acknowledged the existence of some differences and facing challenges, adding, “But our ultimate goal is to stop this conflict and ensure that Iran is not able to produce nuclear weapons.”
Mertz pointed out that “NATO’s strength does not depend only on the number of soldiers, but on common goals, and this unity still exists until now.”
He added that he had no doubt that “the United States has a great interest in having a strong European part within the alliance on its side, and the opposite is also true.”
The tension between the administration of US President Donald Trump and the European partners in NATO has raised questions about the future of the alliance.
Tensions between the two sides were already high after Washington criticized Europe over defense spending and issues such as immigration policy, but it worsened after Germany and other European countries refused to support the war that the United States and Israel started against Iran at the end of February.
After Meretz said last month that Iran was “humilizing” the United States, Trump responded by ordering the withdrawal of 5,000 American troops from Germany and canceling the planned deployment of long-range Tomahawk missiles there.
It is noteworthy that Merz was a guest in Stockholm in his capacity as head of the German Christian Democratic Party, and the Swedish media described his appearance there as the beginning of the election campaign for Prime Minister Kristersson, as voters in Sweden are scheduled to go to the polls to elect a new parliament for the country on September 13th.
