Center on Europe and Eurasia

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz listens to a reporter's question during a meeting with US President Donald Trump in the Oval Office on June 5, 2025, in Washington, DC. (Anna Moneymaker via Getty Images)

US President Donald Trump, accompanied by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, speaks during a Cabinet meeting at the White House on February 26, 2025, in Washington, DC. (Andrew Harnik via Getty Images)

(Screenshot via YouTube)

(Screenshot via The Hill)

The NATO flag is seen at the NATO headquarters building on April 4, 2025, in Brussels, Belgium. (Omar Havana via Getty Images)

President Donald Trump speaks before signing the Take it Down Act on May 19, 2025, at the White House. (Tom Brenner via Getty Images)

Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF) Leaders' Summit in Oslo on May 9, 2025. (Alastair Grant via Getty Images)

A small brick building in Norilsk, Russia, where winter lasts months 11, on March 21, 2025. (Alexander Manzyuk via Getty Images)

Russian President Vladimir Putin meets with Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov at the Kremlin on May 7, 2025. (Getty Images)

President Donald Trump delivers remarks during a joint press conference with French President Emmanuel Macron on February 24, 2025, in Washington, DC. (Getty Images)

Soldiers drive a British Challenger battle tank as they take part in an urban combat exercise during a United Kingdom–French joint military maneuver near Reims, France, on April 22, 2025. (Getty Images)

Kazakh Naval Forces ships sail through the Caspian Sea during a military exercise on October 2, 2020. (Ministry of Defence of Kazakhstan via Getty Images)