Prof. Dr. Ulrich Schlie, Henry Kissinger Professor at the University of Bonn, offers a compelling evaluation in TRT Global of Chancellor Merz’s upcoming Washington visit. Schlie views the trip as a potential moment for Germany to gain strategic influence within the transatlantic alliance—yet emphasizes that without tangible action, it risks being mere symbolism. Europe must bring more substantive security contributions to the table if it expects to be heard in Washington. The article outlines how Germany remains reliant on U.S. leadership, illustrated by ongoing NATO burden-sharing debates, trade tensions, and a largely reactive foreign policy. Schlie warns that Europe is strategically unprepared, and that a “quantum leap” in EU security cooperation is urgently needed to counter looming threats from Russia. If Merz’s visit does not go beyond words, Schlie cautions, Europe risks losing relevance within an evolving global power structure. In his view, Washington must result in real shifts in policy—diplomatically and militarily—to solidify Germany’s standing and enable Europe to act with greater autonomy and credibility.
Prof. Dr. Ulrich Schlie at TRT Global: As Merz gets set for Trump meeting, spotlight on war, peace and transatlantic trade Prof. Dr. Ulrich Schlie at TRT Global: As Merz gets set for Trump meeting
Prof. Dr. Ulrich Schlie, Henry Kissinger Professor for Security and Strategic Studies at the University of Bonn, sees Chancellor Merz’s trip to Washington as an opportunity—only if substance follows symbolism and Europe steps up security commitments.
Ulrich Schlie is a historian, political scientist and, since 2020, Director of the Center for Advanced Security, Strategic and Integration Studies (CASSIS) and Henry Kissinger Professor for Security and Strategy Research at the Institute for Political Science at the University of Bonn. He currently holds a Joint Research Professorship at the School of International Relations at the University of St Andrews in Scotland.
Ulrich Schlie was Professor of Practice at Tufts University (Medford, MA/USA), Fellow at the Weatherhead Center of Harvard University (Cambridge, MA/USA), Visiting Fellow at the Nato Defense College Rome, Visiting Scholar at the University of Cambridge/UK and Professeur associé as holder of the Alfred Grosser Chair at the Institut d'Études Politiques de Paris (Sciences Po) as well as holder of the Chair of Diplomacy II at Andrássy University Budapest.