Biden and Scholz express support for Kiev in Washington despite their differences

In a meeting planned from the beginning with an extremely low profile, Joe Biden received German Chancellor Olaf Scholz at the White House this Friday to share a “working” day. This is Scholz’s first visit to Washington since the beginning of the invasion, and at the same time the US approved a new package of 400 million dollars in military aid to Ukraine, on the occasion of the first anniversary of the war.

The last time a German was in the White House was in the weeks before Russian troops crossed the border, when the massing of troops already made us suspect a definite move by Russia. Then Scholz said that in the event of a Russian invasion, Germany and the USA would take “the same steps” and that they would be “very difficult for Russia”.

The atmosphere on this occasion was thinned after the last clashes between the two countries. The latter, due to Germany’s reluctance to hand over heavy military weapons in aid packages without a commitment from the United States to act in the same direction.

From Scholz’s party, Nils Schmid, the foreign affairs spokesman for the German Social Democrats, stressed that the low-profile visit was due to the two leaders’ need for a more business-oriented appointment. “The idea is that it is a real working visit. Not a state visit. It’s about them sitting down together, putting all their cards on the table, weighing options, sharing analysis and discussion.”

exchange of compliments

For his part, Scholz’s spokesman stressed that the discreet nature of the visit, with no press conference or state events, was “exceptional” because the leaders had to “focus on work”.

During the meeting, Biden highlighted the “critical military support” that Germany has provided to Ukraine and the “profound moral support that they have given to the Ukrainians” and recognized the difficulties that Germany has had in removing its dependence on Russian energy sources.

Scholz, for his part, delved into the message given by the two administrations in recent weeks that support for Ukraine is being maintained, and he emphasized that the support of the two countries to the Ukrainian side will continue “as long as necessary”.