Trump, Merkel meet head to head, but none sees eye to eye

German Chancellor Angela Merkel and US President Donald Trump aired differences over trade, Nato and the Iran nuclear accord on Friday at a White House meeting where they tried to put on a show of warmth and friendship despite tensions between the two allies.

کد خبر: ۷۹۴۴۹۳

تاریخ: ۰۹ ارديبهشت ۱۳۹۷ - ۰۹:۱۳

Trump and Merkel steered away from the kind of awkward confrontations that have characterised past meetings, going out of their way to compliment each other and accentuate areas of agreement. But Trump pressed his complaint that the US-Europe trade relationship was “unfair,” and Merkel made clear that he had not made the commitment she was seeking — permanently exempting the EU from the tariffs Trump imposed in March.

With Trump poised to impose tariffs on steel and aluminium soon that will impact European exports, Merkel said the decision is now in Trump’s hands on whether to grant exemptions to European Union nations. “We had an exchange of views. The decision lies with the president,” Merkel told a joint press conference after Trump complained about the US-European trade imbalance, particularly in regards to automobiles.

Merkel’s quick trip came the same week as a three-day state visit by French President Emmanuel Macron, who, like Merkel, pressed Trump on keeping the US in the nuclear deal with Iran. Neither leader appeared to make significant progress convincing Trump. He will decide by May 12 whether to revive sanctions on Iran. Doing so would be a serious blow to the deal, which many Western countries sees as essential for stopping Tehran developing a nuclear bomb.