Germany’s Merz in Asia warns of threat to global order

In Singapore, to start a four-day business-oriented trip that will also bring him to Japan and South Korea, Chancellor Friedrich Merz said it was up to European and Asian nations to find their spot amid a changing global order.

“We must assert our interests in an international environment shaped by renewed great-power rivalry,” Merz said.

With a view to unpredictable tariffs imposed by the United States under President Donald Trump and trade restrictions from China, Merz emphasized the stability offered by Germany and the rest of Europe.

“This is a deliberate counterpoint to what we are currently seeing. We want to do things differently, and we want to show that there is a better way,” Merz said, adding that Europe sought to expand partnerships to increase free trade with open competition, reliability and a rules-based order.

He also called for increased international investment and cooperation.

“Under the federal government I lead, investment opportunities will be continuously improved,” Merz said following a meeting with Singapore Prime Minister Lawrence Wong. “I encounter a great deal of confidence here in Germany and in Europe as locations for investment.”

The German leader called for a new free-trade agreement between the 27-member European Union and the Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), comprising 12 countries across five continents, including Australia, Canada, Japan, Mexico and the United Kingdom. Neither the United States nor China is part of the CPTPP.

For his part, Wong said investment in Germany and Europe would continue.

“Many of our investors, including our sovereign wealth funds, have been investing in Germany for a long time,” Wong said. “They will continue to invest because they are confident that, in the long term, Germany and Europe have potential.”

Merz and Wong agreed their nations would work to expand cooperation in security and defense as well as trade, investment, sustainable energy and artificial intelligence.