Germany’s Friedrich Merz says he would not want his children to move to US

{"text":[[{"start":7.6,"text":"Friedrich Merz has said his admiration for the US is waning and that he would dissuade his own children from moving there, as relations between Berlin and Washington hit a new low."}],[{"start":18.9,"text":"The German chancellor told students in Würzburg on Friday he would “not recommend my children to move to the US at the moment”, given the “social climate developing there”. "}],[{"start":28.349999999999998,"text":"“I am a big admirer of the US. But my admiration is currently not growing,” he quipped to a laughing audience."}],[{"start":35.75,"text":"Once a staunch Atlanticist and in Donald Trump’s good graces for most of the past year, Merz’s relationship with the US president has rapidly deteriorated since the US-Israeli strikes on Iran have driven up energy prices — adding to Germany’s economic malaise."}],[{"start":null,"text":"

"}],[{"start":51.15,"text":"At a meeting with school children earlier this month, Merz said Iran had “humiliated” the US — prompting Trump’s ire, who said the chancellor was “totally ineffective” and should focus on “fixing his broken country”."}],[{"start":64.35,"text":"Trump then announced he would withdraw 5,000 troops from Germany, including the deployment of a US battalion equipped with long-range Tomahawk missiles, leaving a gap in Europe’s deterrence against Russia."}],[{"start":77.05,"text":"The pair’s relationship further deteriorated this month when Trump threatened to impose higher tariffs on European cars, which would mainly hurt the German economy. "}],[{"start":null,"text":""}],[{"start":null,"text":""}],[{"start":86.7,"text":"Merz has since sought to patch things up. On Friday, he posted on X that he “had a good phone call” with Trump, who was on his way back from China. He agreed with the US president that Iran must open the Strait of Hormuz and “must not be allowed to have nuclear weapons”. "}],[{"start":103.95,"text":"“We also discussed a peaceful solution for Ukraine and co-ordinated our positions ahead of the Nato summit in Ankara. The US and Germany are strong partners in a strong Nato,” Merz added."}],[{"start":115.55,"text":"In a TV interview last week, the chancellor said he would “remain committed to maintaining a good transatlantic relationship”. But he also added: “A good partnership must also withstand differences of opinion.”"}],[{"start":128.2,"text":"His clash with Trump has won him little additional support among voters. Opinion polls suggest Merz is the least popular German chancellor since 1997, with only 16 per cent of respondents saying they are happy with his leadership. The discontent is largely due to the sluggish economy and a decline in the quality of social services, despite a debt-fuelled spending push focused on improving the military and fixing crumbling infrastructure."}],[{"start":162.25,"text":""}]],"url":"https://audio.ftcn.net.cn/album/a_1778888429_5512.mp3"}