German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel unleashed a volley of criticism against US President Donald Trump, slamming his "short-sighted" policies that have "weakened the West" and hurt European interests. The sharp words from Gabriel came after Trump concluded his first official tour abroad which took him to Saudi Arabia, Israel, Brussels and then Italy for a G7 summit. Germany's exasperation was laid bare after the G7 summit which wrapped up on Saturday with the US refusing to sign up to upholding the 2015 Paris climate accord. Obama's participation in a forum with Merkel last Thursday came on the eve of her meeting with Trump in Italy during the G7 summit. After the summit, Merkel said at an election rally in southern Germany that "the times in which we could completely depend on others are on the way out.

Source: The Local May 29, 2017 14:37 UTC