German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said Friday he would advise his children against living or studying in the United States at this time, citing a rapidly changing social climate and limited opportunities even for the highly educated.The comments highlight tensions between the US and its European allies under President Donald Trump, as disputes over trade, the war in Ukraine and now Iran have put the NATO alliance under strain. Merz said last month that America was being humiliated in the Iran war, which angered Trump. A few days later, Washington announced a partial troop withdrawal from Germany.Speaking to a youth audience at a Catholic conference in Wurzburg, Merz said people are prone to thinking in “disaster mode” about the state of the world and urged Germans to feel more optimistic about their country’s potential.“I firmly believe that there are few countries in the world that offer as great opportunities as Germany, especially for young people,” he said.“I would not recommend that my children today go to America, get their education there and work there, because a social environment has suddenly developed there,” said Merz, a 70-year-old father of three.“Today, even the most educated people in America have great difficulty finding a job.”