Merz allowed participation in the Peace Council, but not in its current form

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz is ready to join the initiative of US President Donald Trump on the creation of a Peace Council but cannot accept the plan in its current form. He said this during a visit to Rome, the agency Reuters.

"As the Peace Council is currently set up, we cannot accept its governance structure in Germany for constitutional reasons," Merz said, without elaborating.

The German chancellor added that Berlin is ready to explore various forms of cooperation with the United States if the goal is to find new formats that will bring the world closer to peace in different regions.

Mertz believes that these formats will not necessarily be limited to Gaza and the Middle East but can be applied, for example, to Ukraine.

• On January 18, 2026, it was reported that the Trump administration wants to at least $1 billion from countries seeking a permanent seat on its Peace Council.
• On January 19, it became known that Macron does not plan to accept Trump's invitation to join the so-called Peace Council. In general, the invitation was received by leaders of five dozen countries, including Ukraine.
• January 22 in Davos the ceremony took place creation of the Peace Council.