Merz and Trump also chat about personal matters at NATO dinner

At the dinner, the encounter reportedly proceeded in a relaxed manner nonetheless. The presence of Charlotte Merz also contributed to a personal conversational atmosphere, according to the reports. The chancellor's wife was part of the German delegation at the dinner.

Trump and Meloni also in conversation

In addition to the German-American talks, the meeting between Trump and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni also proceeded in a friendly manner. The atmosphere was "animated and friendly," according to the same sources. A previous public exchange of blows between the two thus found no echo in their personal encounter for the time being.

The dispute between Trump and Meloni was triggered by the US president's claim that Meloni had asked him for a joint photo at the G7 summit in the French town of Évian. Meloni rejected this as "completely fabricated." The two had engaged in a heated exchange on social media between the G7 summit three weeks ago and the NATO summit.

Tensions in the background

Trump recently spoke more conciliatorily about the Italian head of government: "I actually find her nice." With this statement, he moved closer to the tone that also prevailed at the joint dinner. Observers interpreted the appearance at the table as a sign of at least a temporary easing of tensions between the heads of state and government.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte were also among the guests at the dinner. No further details about their conversations with Trump and Merz were initially known. The focus of reporting was the encounter between the chancellor and his wife and the US president.

The gathering on the sidelines of the NATO summit is regarded as an important signal for the cohesion of the alliance. Given the strained transatlantic relations, the personal exchange between Merz and Trump was noted attentively in Berlin. The German government emphasized afterward the open and constructive nature of the talks.

Open questions after the evening

It initially remained unclear whether the evening encounter would have any concrete political consequences. Neither Washington nor Berlin announced any results beyond the dinner talks. Further bilateral meetings on the sidelines of the summit remained possible.

The reports about the dinner are based primarily on accounts from German government circles. The information about the table conversations was not initially independently confirmed. The US side also did not comment in detail on the course of the evening at first.