Merz told Vance that Europeans stand together

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said that Europe is ready to fight, if necessary, for its core values of freedom and democracy, in a direct response to the repeated criticism of the administration of US President Donald Trump against the European Union. The German chancellor made the statement at the ceremony of awarding the Charlemagne Prize to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, according to Reuters.

In his speech, Merz said that Europe does not want an escalation of the tariff dispute with the United States, which would harm both sides.

He also mentioned the speech of US Vice President J.D. Vance in Munich in February, in which the American politician criticized Europe, saying that it faced an "internal threat" and that freedom of speech was "receding".

Merz's remarks came a day after the US said it would impose visa bans on foreigners who "censor Americans".

"Vance posed this question to us in his own way in Munich earlier this year: what do we Europeans stand for together? What do we stand for together? Ladies and gentlemen, we do not have a simple answer to this question," the German Chancellor said.

According to him, Europe has the strongest and best response imaginable.

"We in Europe stand for what we have – over centuries, through countless setbacks and disasters – conceived, developed, achieved and fought for together: namely, the conviction that freedom and democracy are worthy of being vigorously defended and, if necessary, fought for," the politician continued.

• on February 14, 2025, US Vice President delivered a speech at the Munich Security Conference. In particular, he advised Europe to "tolerate" American businessman Elon Musk and said that the greatest threat to the United States is not Russia or China, but "Europe's departure from the core values shared by the United States".
• Rutte called Vance's speech at the Munich Security Conference "philosophical" and called on European countries to increase defense spending.