Biden welcomes Germany Chancellor Angela Merkel at White house

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW:

• President Joe Biden welcomed Germany Chancellor Angela Merkel at the White House on Thursday.
• The two leaders talked about certain issues with an objective of strengthening their ties.
• The Bidens also hosted a dinner for Merkel and her husband Joachim Sauer.

President Joe Biden welcomed German Chancellor Angela Merkel at the White House Thursday, marking what would be anticipated as her last official trip to Washington as she steps down before the year ends.

Both leaders engaged in almost one hour of discussion on topics such as the COVID-19 pandemic, vaccine property rights, climate change, Afghanistan, cyberattacks and agressions from Russia and China.

Speaking at a press conference after their alignment, Biden said that they also talked about the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline, a controversial issue where both nations had disagreements. While the US president was against the Russia-to-Germany deal over concerns that it would give Russia more leverage, the Chancellor emphasized that it was purely business and should not coincide with politics.

“While I reiterated my concerns about Nord Stream to Chancellor Merkel, we are absolutely united in our conviction that Russia must not be allowed to use energy as a weapon to coerce or threaten its neighbors,” Biden said.

Merkel’s White House visit was Biden’s first personal meeting with a European leader in Washington. Both leaders noted their close ties during their meetup on Thursday.

Biden acknowledged Merkel’s “groundbreaking” leadership, saying that personally, he would miss seeing her during summits. On the other hand, Merkel said that she and Biden are “not only partners, but we are very close friends.”

Merkel raised the ongoing COVID-19 travel restrictions that prohibit Europeans from going to the US, Biden shared, noting that he brought his COVID-19 task force head to talk about the issue and hopefully provide specific timings “within the next seven days.”

Both leaders released the Washington Declaration, officially documenting “their commitment to close bilateral cooperation in promoting peace, security, and prosperity around the world.”

They also unveiled a new collaboration project called ‘Future Forum.’ This initiative would group together American and German experts from the academe, business and civil society sectors to work hand-in-hand on how to address various global problems.

Biden is moving towards re-establishing relations with international allies following the controversial ‘America First’ policy of former President Donald Trump, which distorted the ties between the US and Germany. During his presidency, Trump regularly clashed with Merkel, whom he accused as being “captive to Russia.” 

Biden, together with his wife Jill, also hosted a dinner for Merkel and her husband Joachim Sauer at the White House. They were joined by other top GOP and administration officials, as well as former Secretaries of State Colin Powell and Hillary Clinton.

Merkel is set to step down as Germany’s head of state by the end of this year. She assumed the position of Chancellor in 2005.

Source: NBC News