Friedrich Merz made his world-affairs debut Wednesday as Germany’s new chancellor, with plans to immediately team up with allies France and Poland to present a united European front on support for Ukraine and against U.

New German Chancellor Friedrich Merz sets off on his first trip abroad on Wednesday to France and Poland in a bid to renew relations with the country's top allies and show that Germany is back on the world stage despite a bumpy start to his government.

Friedrich Merz travels to Paris and Warsaw on Wednesday on his first foreign trip as German chancellor, still reeling from a humiliating setback in Tuesday’s government transition that raised early questions about his leadership.