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.

Germany's election winner Friedrich Merz warned the United States on Monday against turning its back on allies but also urged Europeans to build up their own defence capabilities.

Friedrich Merz could have one shot at fending off ascending populists and an increasingly hostile U.S., analysts say.