Merkel reveals Germany's key interest

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said that maintaining the NATO defense alliance is of utmost importance to Germany.

"Maintaining NATO today is even more in our very own interests as it was in the Cold War - or at least as important as it was in the Cold War," she told lawmakers in parliament.

"Because, and the foreign minister said this yesterday, Europe currently cannot defend itself on its own," Reuters cited Merkel as saying.