Joe Biden was actually supposed to visit Germany this weekend. However, he postponed the trip because of a problem at home. There is now an alternative date.
US President Joe Biden wants to make up for his visit to Germany, which was postponed due to Hurricane Milton, in just a few days – but on a much smaller scale. According to information from government circles and the Federal President’s Office, talks with Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier are planned for next Friday in Berlin. However, the major Ukraine solidarity summit at the US air force base Ramstein in Rhineland-Palatinate will not be rescheduled for the time being.
The state visit shrinks to a working visit
Biden had originally planned a state visit with full protocol honors for last Friday and Saturday, but then canceled it at short notice due to the hurricane. A subsequent visit to Angola in Africa was also canceled because of this.
Now the state visit, which always includes a state banquet and a visit to another federal state in addition to the capital, is reduced to a short working visit to Berlin. There will probably be a reception with military honors at Bellevue Palace and a press conference with Scholz. According to “Spiegel”, it is also planned that Biden will be awarded the special level of the Grand Cross of the Federal Order of Merit by Steinmeier for his services to German-American friendship.
Next Ramstein meeting will probably be at defense minister level
It is not yet entirely clear whether the originally planned four-way meeting between Scholz and Biden with French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer will take place. This would at least bring together Ukraine’s four most important allies in the defensive fight against the Russian invader.
But nothing will come of the summit in Ramstein with a total of 50 allied countries. The next meeting there on military support for Ukraine will probably take place again at the defense minister level. The Berlin Ministry of Defense is hoping for an appointment in October.
The visit presents the Chancellery with several scheduling challenges. Scholz will probably have to return to Berlin earlier from the EU summit in Brussels planned for Thursday and Friday. However, his visit to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Istanbul planned for Saturday will take place as planned.
Biden’s first bilateral visit to Germany
It is Biden’s first bilateral visit to Germany in his almost four-year term in office. The US President took part in the G7 summit in Elmau in 2022 and made refueling stops with his government plane at the American military base in Ramstein on another occasion, but did not dedicate a solo trip to Germany. The 81-year-old now wants to make up for this shortly before he leaves the White House.
Biden leaves office in January and will then be replaced by former President Donald Trump or his current Vice President Kamala Harris. The decision will be made on November 5th. The election could also have significant consequences for German-American relations. Trump had put massive pressure on Germany because of the German trade surplus, what he saw as low military spending and the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline between Germany and Russia.
Almost two thirds of Germans see Trump as a threat to relations with the USA
According to a survey by the opinion research institute YouGov on behalf of the German Press Agency, almost two thirds of Germans (62 percent) now expect German-American relations to deteriorate if Trump comes back to power. Only 10 percent believe that Germany’s relationship with the USA will improve if the Republican wins the election. 19 percent expect it to stay about the same.
If Democrat Kamala Harris becomes president, only 9 percent expect German-American relations to deteriorate. 35 percent believe that the relationship between the two NATO partners would rather improve. 44 percent assume that it would remain about the same.
Large majority for more defense spending
In the survey, a large majority of Germans (63 percent) are of the opinion that Germany should invest even more in defense in order to reduce its dependence on the USA in this area. 26 percent are against it. However, the stationing of US medium-range missiles in Germany planned for 2026 is supported by a majority of 51 percent. Only 37 percent reject this.
Source: Stern
I have been working in the news industry for over 6 years, first as a reporter and now as an editor. I have covered politics extensively, and my work has appeared in major newspapers and online news outlets around the world. In addition to my writing, I also contribute regularly to 24 Hours World.
