German Chancellor Friedrich Merz underscored the threat posed by Russia during his visit to watch German Navy exercises on Thursday (August 28).

"The threat posed by Russia is real," Merz said aboard the frigate ‘Bayern’ in the Baltic Sea. "We see daily actions by the Russian army. They are testing our readiness and our ability to defend ourselves."

Merz pointed out that Germany "has an extremely important role" in protecting the freedom, peace and territorial integrity of NATO. "Whether we like it or not, our geostrategic location is the hub of Europe," the chancellor added.

Merz arrived in Rostock for his inaugural visit to the German Navy. As part of visit, the chancellor toured the frigate, learning about its operations and the responsibilities of the crew.

Earlier on Thursday, Merz took part in a round of talks at the naval command in Rostock and visited the new national headquarters, Commander Task Force Baltic (CTF), local media report.

DESCRIPCIÓN DE IMÁGENES

'The threat posed by Russia is real,' says Germany's Merz

VIDEO SHOWS: GERMAN CHANCELLOR FRIEDRICH MERZ DURING HIS FIRST VISIT AS CHANCELLOR TO GERMAN NAVY / MERZ WATCHING EXERCISES OF SEVERAL NAVY UNITS IN BALTIC SEA

RESENDING WITH COMPLETE SCRIPT

SHOWS: AT SEA NEAR ROSTOCK, GERMANY (AUGUST 28, 2025) (WELT POOL - Access all)

1. VARIOUS OF CREW OF FRIGATE "BAYERN" ASSISTING HELICOPTER LANDING

AT SEA NEAR ROSTOCK, GERMANY (AUGUST 28, 2025) (REUTERS - Access all)

2. VARIOUS OF GERMAN CHANCELLOR FRIEDRICH MERZ ARRIVING AT FRIGATE "BAYERN" ON HELICOPTER

AT SEA NEAR ROSTOCK, GERMANY (AUGUST 28, 2025) (WELT POOL - Access all)

3. VARIOUS OF MERZ TALKING TO CREW MEMBER

AT SEA NEAR ROSTOCK, GERMANY (AUGUST 28, 2025) (REUTERS - Access all)

4. (SOUNDBITE) (German) GERMAN CHANCELLOR, FRIEDRICH MERZ, SAYING:

"The threat posed by Russia is real. We can see it here in the Baltic Sea too. I have been briefed in detail by soldiers in Rostock about the threat situation. We see daily actions by the Russian army. They are testing our readiness and our ability to defend ourselves."

5. VARIOUS OF MERZ LOOKING AT NAVY EQUIPMENT AND TALKING TO CREW MEMBERS

6. (SOUNDBITE) (German) GERMAN CHANCELLOR, FRIEDRICH MERZ, SAYING:

"And that is why I want to say that we will do everything in our power in the coming months and years to protect the freedom, peace and territorial integrity of the alliance territory. And the Federal Republic of Germany has an extremely important role to play in this. Whether we like it or not, our geostrategic location is the hub of Europe. We must make a particularly great effort where we live, namely in Germany, to do just that – to defend our freedom, to defend peace and to defend the territorial integrity of our territory."

7. VARIOUS OF MERZ HOLDING NAVY DEVICE AND TALKING TO CREW MEMBER

8. MERZ TALKING TO CREW MEMBERS

9. (SOUNDBITE) (German) GERMAN CHANCELLOR, FRIEDRICH MERZ, SAYING:

"Following my visit here on the frigate ‘Bayern’ and my visit to Rostock, I will now proceed to the Franco-German government consultations, where we will not only discuss defence policy cooperation, but also, and above all, economic policy cooperation. We are a European single market. This European single market is more important to Germany than to almost any other country. And it is also in our deepest economic interest to have an open European single market and to work closely together, particularly with France, but also with many others in Europe."

AT SEA NEAR ROSTOCK, GERMANY (AUGUST 28, 2025) (WELT POOL - Access all)

10. CREW MEMBER IN NAVY CONTROL ROOM

11. VARIOUS OF MERZ ENTERING NAVY CONTROL ROOM AND LOOKING AT SCREENS

12. CREW MEMBER IN NAVY CONTROL ROOM

13. VARIOUS OF MERZ SITTING IN NAVY CONTROL ROOM AND LOOKING AT SCREENS