Norms Impact
German Chancellor Merz says US leadership ‘lost,’ calls for repair of relations
A U.S. ally is publicly warning that American leadership is slipping as threats to NATO credibility and punitive tariffs strain the core norm of dependable transatlantic partnership.
Feb 13, 2026
Sources
Summary
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said the United States’s claim to global leadership has been “challenged and possibly lost,” and urged President Trump to repair transatlantic relations at the Munich Security Conference. The shift is a public, high-level redefinition of alliance expectations as European leaders frame U.S. policy as destabilizing NATO-centered cooperation. The consequence is reduced strategic cohesion against China and Russia as tariffs, NATO doubt, and unilateral threats drive Europe toward tighter internal alignment.
Reality Check
The threat here is strategic: when U.S. officials and policies cast doubt on NATO commitments and use tariffs as punishment, we normalize transactional alliance management that weakens deterrence and, ultimately, our own security. The conduct described is not presented as a discrete prosecutable act; based on the facts provided, it does not map cleanly onto federal bribery (18 U.S.C. § 201), extortion under color of official right (Hobbs Act, 18 U.S.C. § 1951), or honest-services fraud (18 U.S.C. §§ 1343, 1346). The deeper breach is governance-by-threat—floating territorial takeovers and coercive economic retaliation as routine tools against partners—eroding the anti–quid-pro-quo norm that alliances are anchored in mutual defense commitments, not personal leverage.
Detail
<p>Speaking Friday at the Munich Security Conference to foreign heads of state, politicians, and military leaders, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said the United States’s leadership role has been challenged and “possibly lost” and urged President Trump to rebuild trust with Europe. Merz argued that in great-power rivalry the United States cannot “go it alone,” and that a shared commitment to NATO remains the best defense against external threats, including an advancing Chinese military.</p><p>Merz’s remarks echoed Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney’s earlier warning of a “rupture” in the U.S.-led world order, tied to European anxiety over Trump’s threats to take over Greenland, use of tariffs as punishment, and doubts about U.S. commitments to NATO. Merz called for a “new transatlantic partnership” while also urging European unity in response to a more antagonistic United States. He referenced Vice President J.D. Vance’s 2025 Munich speech criticizing Europe on press freedoms and migration, and contrasted U.S. “MAGA” cultural politics with European legal limits tied to human dignity. Secretary of State Marco Rubio was expected to address the conference, saying the “old world is gone” and alliances must be reexamined.</p>