
Friedrich Merz made his world-affairs debut Wednesday as Germany’s new chancellor, with plans to immediately team up with allies France and Poland to present a united European front on support for Ukraine and against U.S. President Donald Trump’s trade war.
The new pairing of Merz and French President Emmanuel Macron — both firm believers in the European Union — could help stiffen resistance from the 27-nation bloc against pressure from Trump and against Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine.