Former German Chancellor Angela Merkel has called on European countries to pursue a more active dialogue with Russia while simultaneously striving for greater political and strategic independence from the United States. She made these remarks during a reception at Hamburg’s City Hall.
According to Merkel, the European Union should act as an independent participant in negotiations on key issues of global politics alongside the United States—including when it comes to the war in Ukraine. She recalled that as early as 2021 she regarded it as a mistake that contacts with Vladimir Putin were effectively left to Washington.
“We should not leave such meetings solely to the discretion of the United States. After all, they concern Europe’s vital interests,” the former chancellor stressed.
Merkel also said the EU must continue to act as “a military supporter of Ukraine against the aggressor Russia—which is important and indispensable,” while at the same time using its own diplomatic capacity to help bring the war to an end.
According to her, only such an approach will ensure that “we achieve what we want—that Russia does not win the war and that Ukraine has a future as a sovereign state in peace and freedom.”
Merkel also called on European states to strengthen their economic and technological independence so that the European Union can act as a unified global actor and effectively defend its interests and values. She did not specify from which partners Europe should reduce its dependence, although the context of her remarks suggested the United States in particular.
French President Emmanuel Macron has also previously spoken in favor of direct negotiations with Russia. At the same time, Germany’s current chancellor Friedrich Merz—Merkel’s fellow member of the CDU—has rejected such calls.