Europe must seek to “achieve independence” from the United States, Germany’s likely next chancellor Friedrich Merz said after his opposition conservatives won elections on Sunday, in a vote that also saw surging support for the far-right.

Provisional results confirmed that mainstream conservatives led by Friedrich Merz won Germany's national election​, while far-right party AfD surged to become the nation's second-largest.

Merz expressed concern over changing relations with Washington under the Trump administration, emphasizing the need for gradual independence from the U.S.