Biden arrives in Germany for talks on Ukraine and the Middle East
Kyiv • UNN
The US President will discuss the war in Ukraine with European leaders. The Middle East conflict is also on the agenda. Biden's trip follows Zelenskiy's tour of Western capitals.
US President Joe Biden arrived in Berlin on Thursday for a short visit to discuss Russia's invasion of Ukraine with the leaders of Germany, France and the United Kingdom amid calls from Kyiv to take immediate action to end the fighting. This was reported by Reuters, according to UNN.
Details
On Thursday, the US president landed in Berlin and will hold bilateral talks with the German president and chancellor on Friday morning, followed by a meeting with the leaders of Germany, France, and the UK.
Biden has developed a close working relationship with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, and the trip is partly seen as a nod to that partnership before Biden leaves office in January, Reuters notes.
His trip came as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy toured Western capitals to present his Victory Plan to end the Russian invasion.
“The situation on the battlefield in Ukraine, the trajectory of the war, how allies can best support Ukraine will be a subject of conversation,” a senior U.S. administration official said before leaving for a meeting with European leaders.
Next month's U.S. presidential election heightens the sense of urgency regarding Ukraine given the uncertainty over how both presidential candidates, Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic nominee, and former President Donald Trump, the Republican nominee, will support Ukraine.
“Germany and the United States are the biggest supporters of Ukraine in the defense of its sovereignty and integrity, as well as its democracy. And we will continue to be so,” Scholz said in the German parliament on Wednesday.
“But this is a time when, in addition to our clear support for Ukraine, we must also do everything we can to figure out how we can make sure that this war does not go on forever, that an incredible number of women and men do not die in it.
A senior U.S. official said that there have been discussions among NATO allies about inviting Ukraine to join NATO, but there has been no consensus on the issue. He noted that in July the alliance confirmed that Ukraine was on an “irreversible path” to membership. “The question is tactics... how to stimulate this path,” he said.
Recall
Last week, Biden was scheduled to hold a broader meeting on Ukraine at Ramstein Air Base in Germany during what would have been his first three-day state visit in nearly 40 years. However, he canceled the trip to focus on the response to Hurricane Milton.
Later, it became known that in November Joe Biden would hold a virtual meeting at the level of the leaders of the Contact Group on Ukraine's Defense.
