German Chancellor Friedrich Merz meets Donald Trump in the Oval Office on Thursday ... good ties with the country he considers post-war Germany's "indispensable" ally.

But first Merz must brave the televised rite of passage of an Oval Office meeting with Trump -- whose administration has taken an aggressive stance towards Germany and even backed the far-right there.

(Photo by SAUL LOEB / AFP) / ALTERNATE CROP German Chancellor Friedrich Merz came through his Oval Office encounter ... who was born in Germany in 1869. Merz also hailed Trump as being the ...