Germany’s Merkel says it’s essential to preserve NATO

BERLIN – German Chancellor Angela Merkel says that preserving NATO is at least as essential today as it was during the Cold War, and argues that it is important to keep Turkey in the alliance.

Merkel told the German parliament Wednesday ahead of a NATO summit in London next week that “Europe cannot defend itself alone at the moment; we rely on this trans-Atlantic alliance.”

French President Emmanuel Macron’s recent public criticism of NATO — notably a perceived lack of U.S. leadership, concerns about Turkey since it invaded northern Syria without warning its allies, and the need for Europe to take on more security responsibilities — has shaken the alliance.

Merkel said that “it is of geostrategic significance for NATO that Turkey is in” the alliance.