On Friday, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU) met U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference. The two had about a half‑hour scheduled for a bilateral discussion.

Only minutes earlier, Merz had stressed the importance of the transatlantic defence alliance to the United States in his opening speech. “We Europeans know how precious the trust is upon which NATO is built. In an age of great powers, the United States will also be dependent on that trust” he said. “Even they reach the limits of their own power when they act alone”.

In a brief English retelling of that key point-his address had otherwise been in German-Merz directed it specifically to the U.S. He added that Pentagon strategists already understand NATO’s significance.