Europe must seek to “achieve independence” from the United States, Germany’s likely next chancellor Friedrich Merz said after his opposition conservatives won elections on Sunday, in a vote that also saw surging support for the far-right.

Trump's statements on Ukraine last week make it "clear" Americans are "largely indifferent to the fate of Europe," Merz said.

German conservative leader Friedrich Merz, the presumptive next chancellor, has won his constituency in Sunday's parliamentary election, while a number of political heavyweights suffered humiliating defeats.