German chancellor Friedrich Merz (left) and South Korean president Lee Jae Myung attend a joint press conference at the Blue House in Seoul. (EPA Images pic)SEOUL: German chancellor Friedrich Merz said on Friday that the EU will take the lead in shaping a better offer when free trade and the rules-based trading order come under pressure.
"We want to offer opportunities beyond bilateral agreements," Merz told the Asia-Pacific Conference of German Business in Seoul.
Germany was willing to act with like-minded partners in Europe and elsewhere to defend and further develop the rules-based global economic order, Merz said.
He said that many countries owed their prosperity to international trade and were unwilling to give it up.
