Trump Slams German Chancellor Merz Over Claim That Iran Is ‘Humiliating’ U.S. In Negotiations

President Donald Trump slammed German Chancellor Friedrich Merz over his claim that Iran is “humiliating” the U.S. in negotiations to end the war.

In a social media publication, Trump said Merz believes “it’s OK for Iran to have a Nuclear Weapon.”

“He doesn’t know what he’s talking about! If Iran had a Nuclear Weapon, the whole World would be held hostage. I am doing something with Iran, right now, that other Nations, or Presidents, should have done long ago. No wonder Germany is doing so poorly, both Economically, and otherwise!” he added.

Merz said on Monday that “Iranians are obviously very skilled ⁠at negotiating, or rather, very skilful at not negotiating, letting the Americans travel to Islamabad ​and then leave again without any result.”

He was making reference to developments that took place during the weekend. Namely, the Trump administration announcing it would send special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner to Pakistan to meet with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi only for the latter to leave the country before they arrived. Trump ended up cancelling the trip.

“I see no point of sending them on an 18-hour flight in the current situation. It’s too long. We can do it just as well by telephone. The Iranians can call us if they want. We are not gonna travel just to sit there,” Trump said.

“An entire nation is being humiliated by the Iranian leadership, especially by these so-called Revolutionary Guards. And so I hope that this ends as quickly as possible,” Merz added during the talk.

Merz went on to recall that the U.S. did not consult with its NATO allies before launching the war along with Israel on February 28, noting that he conveyed skepticism to Trump about achieving the war goals after.

“If I had known that it would continue like this for five or six weeks and get progressively worse, I would have told ​him even more emphatically,” ​Merz added.

There have not been significant developments in the war ever since, and the Strait of Hormuz remains closed. As a result, U.S. gasoline prices climbed on Tuesday to their highest level since the Iran war began, reaching a four-year high.

The national average for a gallon of regular gasoline reached $4.176 on April 28, according to AAA, up from $4.03 just five days earlier. The figure is up $1.19 since late February, when the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran.

The latest spike puts gas prices at their highest point since April 2022, shortly after Russia invaded Ukraine, according to The New York Times.

AAA said earlier this month that the national average had crossed $4 a gallon for the first time since August 2022, when prices were still elevated from the last major global energy shock.