"Please, no surprises." Merz urged Trump to stand with Europeans ahead of his summit with Xi and Putin
Donald Trump announced an upcoming meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping and Kremlin dictator Vladimir Putin. The German Chancellor immediately reacted to this statement and, just in case, issued an appeal to Trump.
Photo: Christian Hartmann/Pool Reuters via AP
The meeting is set to take place next week on the sidelines of the APEC (Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation) summit in Shenzhen, China. This will be the first trilateral meeting between Trump, Xi, and Putin.
Officially, it is expected to address the issue of nuclear disarmament: "He will speak about the reduction of nuclear arms worldwide, the proliferation of which President Trump considers very dangerous," a White House spokesperson stated.
According to media reports, a senior Trump administration official said that at the summit he would also address the war of the US and Israel against Iran, while the war in Ukraine "presumably" will not be a topic of discussion, Bild writes.
European politicians are skeptical. They fear that Trump, Xi, and Putin will seize this opportunity to strike a deal regarding the war in Ukraine, guided solely by their own interests.
Therefore, Chancellor Merz urged the US president to remain on Ukraine's side: "Please, no surprises. Stay on Europe's team and stand with Ukraine. Let us work together for real peace in Ukraine!"
The Chancellor made this statement on the morning of November 13 during a meeting of EU heads of state and government in Dublin. According to Merz, at the summit "some fear" that the meeting between Trump and Putin in China "could become, so to speak, a second Anchorage."