Germany warns against election interference as US offers funding to Maga-aligned causes in Europe

Germany’s Friedrich Merz meets Donald Trump in the Oval Office in March. Photograph: Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP/Getty Images View image in fullscreen Germany’s Friedrich Merz meets Donald Trump in the Oval Office in March. Photograph: Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP/Getty Images Germany warns US against election interference after it announces grants scheme State department says initiative will provide funding to ‘address sovereignty, migration, censorship and lawfare’ Friedrich Merz has warned Donald Trump’s administration against interfering in German elections after the US state department announced a scheme to fund Maga-aligned causes in Europe. The German chancellor was responding to a new US initiative offering grants of up to $3m (£2.2m) for European charities, thinktanks and individuals. The funding will be for those seeking to “address national sovereignty, migration, censorship, and lawfare challenges in line with shared political philosophy, law, and our common western civilizational heritage”. Amid growing concerns that the US is seeking to directly influence European politics, Merz said he did not want the US to interfere in German state elections in September. “For ‌our ‌part, we do ‌not interfere in American elections,” he told a press conference on Wednesday. “Conversely, I do not ‌want the American government or institutions close to the government to interfere in German ⁠elections.” Former US officials say the grant scheme is part of a months-long effort by the state department to repurpose US government funds to support far-right groups and potentially political parties in Europe. View image in fullscreen Friedrich Merz made his comments during his annual summer press conference in Berlin. Photograph: Clemens Bilan/EPA The language around who might be eligible to receive the money is ambiguous, one former state department official said. The announcement of the grants specifies that “individuals” and “governmental institution” (sic) can apply, without further detail as to whom or what these categories might include. Previous reporting has suggested that the state department under Trump is interested in funding political parties in Europe , but that it could be hampered by US laws around foreign assistance. On Wednesday, Merz highlighted that it is illegal to finance ‌political parties in Germany from abroad. The former state department official said: “There seems to be an effort by the state department to put the thumb on the scale of elections in Europe, giving an unfair advantage to rightwing parties with resources that they would ordinarily not get.” The initiative follows in the wake of high-profile attacks on traditional allies in western European countries by US figures including the vice-president, JD Vance, on issues including migration, abortion and online safety initiatives. State department officials have also been busy forging links with European social conservative groups as well as far-right parties. In December,