Merz, the leader of the center-right Christian Democratic Union, became Germany’s chancellor in early May after two rounds of voting. That followed the elections in March, which saw his party secure the majority, while the hard-right Alternative fur Deutschland party, or AfD, took second.

The scheduled meeting next week follows some tensions during Germany’s election cycle between the Trump administration and German officials including Merz.

Officials in the Trump administration had waded into German politics ever since taking over in mid-January, particularly Elon Musk, who angered some German officials with his endorsement of AfD.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Vice President JD Vance were more recently critical of the German domestic spy agency designating AfD as an “extremist” group, a move Rubio called “tyranny in disguise.”

The public criticism prompted a response from Merz, who suggested that the Trump administration should stay out of German politics.

“We have largely stayed out of the American election campaign in recent years, and that includes me personally. We have not taken sides with either candidate. And I ask you to accept that in return,” the German chancellor said.

But the meeting next week will also extend far beyond electoral politics.

Regarding the war in Ukraine, both Merz and Trump have pushed for a ceasefire, a call that has only increased as Russian President Vladimir Putin escalates his military’s attacks on Ukrainian cities.

Trump has recently been expressing his frustration with Putin, saying on Tuesday of this week that he is “playing with fire.”

Merz, meanwhile, has appeared alongside Zelensky in recent weeks, including a meeting on Wednesday that saw a commitment from Germany to help Ukraine produce long-range weapons. After a Kyiv summit in mid-May, Merz, alongside the Ukrainian president and other European leaders, also spoke over the phone with Trump, a discussion that was described as “positive and concrete.”

Also at the forefront is trade. Trump’s trade agenda may have hit a momentary roadblock with the U.S. Court of International Trade’s ruling earlier this week, a ruling that has since been paused, but the European Union still faces some increased tariffs, including a levy on steel that Trump doubled to 50% on Friday.

The EU has vowed to “impose countermeasures” following Trump’s decision, which they lamented as only adding “further uncertainty to the global economy.”

Merz himself has also spoken to Trump about his trade actions shortly after becoming chancellor, when he told the U.S. president that “the best solution would be ‘down to zero’ for everything and for everyone.”