DER SPIEGEL: Mr. Chancellor, you have been in office for nearly a year now – the most powerful political office in the country. Some of the problems that have plagued your tenure thus far have been created by U.S. President Donald Trump. Is it a rather unusual experience to be chancellor in the Trump II era?

Merz: You could certainly say that.

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DER SPIEGEL: Why haven’t you contradicted him more vocally when it comes to his war on Iran?

Merz: I told Donald Trump why we consider the war in Iran wrong. I am nevertheless trying to maintain a good personal relationship with the American president. So far, that effort is succeeding.

DER SPIEGEL: What goes through your mind when you are meeting with him and he launches into one of his monologues – such as the one he recently delivered about Spain during your visit to the Oval Office?

Merz: That was a short monologue. But I am not interested in launching into a debate about Spain or Britain in front of the press in the Oval Office. I told the president behind closed doors that both countries are reliable NATO partners that we should not lose.