In the international politics, conflicts of interest would always exist, yet despite the quarrels, the structural things are often cherished and would not be easily destroyed. Now such a situation has changed significantly. Returning from the G7 Summit, the German Chancellor Angela Merkel remarked in Munich on May 28, 2017, that concerning the relationship between Germany and the United States, "the times in which we (Germany and the U.S.) can fully count on others are somewhat over."
According to a follow-up report in the Western media on May 29, 2017, after the conclusion of the NATO and G7 Summit, Merkel hinted that the Western alliance since World War II was severely damaged by the Brexit and Donald Trump's election to the U.S. president. She pointed out that the experience of the past few days during the Summit has made her realize that, "we need to know we must fight for our own future as Europeans for our destiny". Merkel also reminded that friendship would remain with the United States and the post-Brexit Britain, as it was with Russia and other countries, yet she also stressed that Europeans must know that at this moment, "we Europeans must really take our destiny into our own hands".
Merkel's speech is quite serious. She has compared Europe's relations with the United States and Britain to the EU's relations with Russia. This, of course highlights her huge disappointment with the U.S. President Donald Trump during the global leaders meeting, that the decades of alliance with the United States after World War II has collapsed.
The U.S. media has also noticed the changes. The New York Times pointed out that after the three-day transatlantic meeting, the German leader concluded that Trump is not a reliable partner of her country and Europe. The paper also stated that Merkel's statement was a potentially seismic shift in the transatlantic issue. It is reported that Merkel also said that she would do the best to help the French president Emmanuel Macron to achieve a complete success to restore the German and French as driving forces for Europe.
Anbound's chief researcher Mr. Chan Kung believes that Merkel's speech cannot be considered to be the collective view of the EU, and more likely it is a reflection of Merkel's own disappointment. Even so, the world is facing great changes. While the multi-polar world has existed nominally for a long time, it is only by name and today the situation has changed greatly. After Trump was elected, the United States intends to discard some of its international responsibilities. Therefore, the current international situation shows that the EU, Russia, China, the United States, and its "vassal" Japan will together form the pattern of a multi-polar world in the future. Mr. Chan Kung expects that such a world pattern will create more opportunities for China, and this world structure will also be reflected in the adjustment of international organizations so that more people will recognize it. The key is China should be fully prepared for this.
As for the prospects of the EU, it will not be very optimistic; this will not only be reflected in the financial sector, but also in EU's last pillar, which is German-French relations. Although Merkel hopes to form the EU's pillar together with France, French President Macron is more optimistic about the relationship with Trump. Macron said that he and Trump have some common topics, such as counter-terrorism and maintaining the status of the West in the international community. Therefore, France actually adopts an opportunistic attitude, which is far behind Merkel's ideal Europe.
Final analysis conclusion:
It should be emphasized that the structural rifts in the U.S.-European alliance relationship do not mean the breakdown of the U.S.-European relations, and it does not mean the West has collapsed. However, if the structural rifts continue, it will be a major event that really affects the world's situation, which means that the multi-polar world is gradually taking its place. China has historical strategic opportunities in this change, but it is not necessarily possible for China to seize the opportunities.
