Merz has let Spain down, Der Spiegel sighs:
“America first, EU second. That was the chancellor’s line in Washington. Germany stood by the ‘bully’, not the victim. … Pedro Sánchez has been taking a clear line for months, insisting that Spain stands by international law. That applies to Gaza, to Ukraine, and now also to the war in Iran. … One may consider this naive. … Nevertheless, Sánchez stands for the principles enshrined in the EU treaties. Respect for jointly agreed rules is the essence of the EU. Sánchez is also holding up a mirror to Germany: do we want to throw our values overboard out of fear of the US president? Merz hasn’t provided a convincing answer to this question yet.”