On May 19, 2026, the European Parliament inducted Angela Merkel into the inaugural European Order of Merit as a “Distinguished Member.” In this capacity, she holds a status comparable to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and former Polish President Lech Wałęsa. The award purportedly recognizes contributions to European integration and the defense of shared values. In a ceremony marked by protests from the Patriots for Europe alliance, who decried the event as an exercise in elite self-congratulation (complete with hired spectators to fill empty seats), Merkel was feted for a legacy that many Europeans now experience as a slow-motion catastrophe.
