German Chancellor Angela Merkel said she still believes Europe cannot fully rely on the United States.
In an interview with the German weekly Die Zeit two days before world leaders will gather at the G-20 summit in Germany, Merkel was asked if she would repeat her May remarks that Europe “really must take our fate into our own hands.”
“Yes, exactly that way,” Merkel said, according to the Associated Press. “It is, for example, open whether we can and should in the future rely on the U.S. investing so much as it is has so far in the United Nations’ work, in Middle East policy, in European security or in peace missions in Africa.”
The German chancellor also criticized President Trump for his anti-globalization policies, saying his administration believes there are only “winners and losers” in the global economy, rather than a “win-win situation” where all can benefit from economic progress.
“While we are looking at the possibilities of cooperation to benefit everyone, globalization is seen by the American administration more as a process that is not about a win-win situation but about winners and losers,” Merkel told Die Zeit, according to Reuters.
Merkel’s comments come as she prepares to host Trump and other members of the G-20 at a two-day meeting that begins Friday in Hamburg, Germany.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, along with Trump, will also attend.
Leaders at the meeting are expected to disagree on issues such as trade and climate change, but the German chancellor said her goal is to push for agreement.
“As G-20 president, it is my job to work on possibilities for agreement and not to contribute to a situation where a lack of communication prevails,” she said.
The White House said Tuesday that Trump and Putin will meet for the first time at the G-20 summit and participate in a “normal bilateral meeting.”
A Kremlin spokesman said Putin will ask Trump to return Russian compounds based in the U.S. that were closed by former President Barack Obama. The two leaders are also expected to discuss the war in Syria and instability in Ukraine.
