Merz to MAGA: Butt out of Europe’s elections

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz on Wednesday pushed back against a new million-dollar funding scheme from U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration to support “free speech and religious liberty” in Europe.

Speaking in Berlin, Merz stated that Germany does not interfere in U.S. elections and expects the same in return. He was responding to a reporter’s question on whether he considered the initiative valid advocacy or political interference.

The U.S. State Department on Monday launched a funding scheme worth nearly $5 million “to strengthen and develop democratic resilience, rule of law, freedom of speech and freedom of the press, and the defense of human rights in Europe.” Beneficiaries should “address national sovereignty, migration, censorship, and lawfare challenges in line with shared political philosophy, law, and our common Western civilizational heritage,” the statement reads.

The Financial Times first reported the scheme, which could grant individual applicants up to $3 million. Although the call does not explicitly list political parties as potential beneficiaries, Merz pointed to the illegality of foreign monetary support for political actors in Germany.

“It is illegal to finance political parties in Germany from abroad,” said the conservative leader. “And I assume that our friends around the world, in particular, will also abide by these legal rules that we have established in Germany,” he added.

The U.S. State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Merz’s remarks or whether the program could support civil society organizations linked to far-right parties in Europe, such as Germany’s Alternative for Germany (AfD). Senior U.S. State Department officials have previously denied interfering in European politics despite holding meetings with politicians from Europe’s far right.