In response to the death of Chinese Nobel Peace Prize laureate Liu Xiaobo , who died of organ failure while in government custody , Merkel said in a statement that Liu had been a " courageous fighter for civil rights and freedom of expression . " One of Merkel 's priorities was strengthening transatlantic economic relations . She signed the agreement for the Transatlantic Economic Council on 30 April 2007 at the White House . The Council , co-chaired by an EU and a US official , aims at removing barriers to trade in a further integrated transatlantic free-trade area . It was revealed that , beginning in 2002 , Merkel ’s phone has been " on an NSA target list " . On July 1 , 2013 , the German Foreign Ministry summoned Philip D. Murphy , the U.S. Ambassador to Germany , over allegations that the National Security Agency ( NSA ) had spied on institutions of the European Union . Towards the end of July , the media reported that Germany 's foreign intelligence agency , the Bundesnachrichtendienst ( BND ) , had been actively cooperating with the NSA , which sparked demonstrations in 40 German cities involving thousands of protesters all over the country . It was revealed that Germany 's BND intelligence service has covertly monitored European defence interests and politicians inside Germany at the request of the NSA . A German Parliamentary Committee investigating the NSA spying scandal was set up in 2013 . U.S. President Barack Obama described her at the end of 2016 as his " closest international partner " throughout his tenure as President . Obama also said he would vote for Merkel if he could . Obama 's farewell visit to Berlin in November 2016 was widely interpreted as the passing of the torch of global liberal leadership to Merkel as Merkel was seen by many as the new standard bearer of liberal democracy since the election of Donald Trump as U.S. President . Upon the election of Donald Trump Merkel said that " Germany and America are tied by values of democracy , freedom and respect for the law and human dignity , independent of origin , skin colour , religion , gender , sexual orientation or political views . I offer the next president of the United States , Donald Trump , close cooperation on the basis of these values . " The comment was interpreted as reintegrative shaming . President Obama 's final phone call as U.S. President was to Merkel , during which he thanked her for her " strong , courageous , and steady leadership " and expressed " appreciation for their personal friendship . " Following the G7 Summit in Italy and the NATO Summit in Brussels , Merkel stated on May 28 , 2017 that the US was no longer the reliable partner Europe and Germany had depended on in the past . At an electoral rally in Munich , she said that " We have to know that we must fight for our future on our own , for our destiny as Europeans " , which has been interpreted as an unprecedented shift in the German-American transatlantic relationship
Nobel Peace Prize
2010 Nobel Peace Prize
Foreign policy of the Angela Merkel government