Merz Gives Trump No. 47 Jersey as Europe Courts Him at G7 After Iran Split
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Jun 16
Merz Gives Trump No. 47 Jersey as Europe Courts Him at G7 After Iran Split
3 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Jun 16
Summary
Friedrich Merz used a No. 47 soccer jersey and a belated 80th-birthday message to signal a friendlier tone toward Donald Trump at the G7 summit in France.
European leaders shifted to conciliation after concluding that courting Trump is the best way to manage a disruptive U.S. president and keep Washington engaged on Ukraine.
That outreach follows a bitter rupture over Iran, when European criticism of the war prompted Trump to announce plans to pull some U.S. troops from Europe.
The warmer optics mask deeper strain in the alliance, still burdened by Trump's Greenland threats and repeated attacks on Europe's centrist leaders.