New German Chancellor Friedrich Merz announced a reset in French-German relations to help Europe overcome the "enormous" security and economic challenges it faced during his first trip abroad since taking office to top ally France on Wednesday.

While already planned, the trip comes only a day after Merz was elected chancellor by parliament on the second round of voting. His unprecedented failure to succeed on the first round underscored disunity in the coalition of his conservatives and Social Democrats.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz met with French President Emmanuel Macron. Merz made his first foreign trip as chancellor, and Macron published a video of the meeting on X. It is noted that Macron met Merz in the courtyard of the Élysée Palace in Paris with a “firm handshake and a heartfelt pat on the shoulder.