When other European leaders called out the US-Israeli strikes on Iran as illegal, Germany held back.

In the first few days following the start of the military action, the chancellor, Friedrich Merz, went as far as to say there was no reason for him to criticise the attacks.

This makes the German president’s declaration today that the war is, in his view, a “breach of international law” even more stark.

While Frank-Walter Steinmeier’s role is largely ceremonial, his words mean something in Germany.

His view that “the justification of an imminent attack on the US does not hold water” feels more closely aligned to the blunt assessments coming from Madrid rather than Berlin.

Steinmeier called the US-Israeli operation a “politically disastrous mistake” and a “truly avoidable, unnecessary war if its goal was to stop Iran from developing a nuclear weapon”.

This goes much further than the chancellor, although Merz has also become far more openly critical of the operation as the weeks have gone by.

‘A rift too deep with the US’

But Steinmeier didn’t stop there.

His unusually strong comments underlined the breakdown in the transatlantic relationship since Donald Trump returned to the White House, as he warned of a rupture comparable to Germany’s break with Russia.

Steinmeier said the US administration had a different world view to Germany, “one that shows no regard for established rules, partnership or hard-won trust”.

“The rift is too deep and the trust in American power politics has been lost, not only among our allies but…worldwide,” he added as he addressed an audience of German diplomats in Berlin.

Steinmeier is not alone in his view.

The frequent flow of insults, threats and tariffs being issued by Washington since January 2025 has left many in the EU with the opinion that the relationship is increasingly toxic and unreliable, and the best way to survive it is for Europeans to stick together.