Biden makes farewell visit to Berlin
After a one-week delay, Joe Biden has arrived in Germany for a state visit. His talks with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz will focus on the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East. The outgoing US President will also receive Germany's highest order of merit. Europe's press sees reasons to praise Biden, but the cancelled Ukraine summit in Ramstein is still a topic.
Last attempt to fortify uncertain partnership
Biden's visit to Berlin is meant to be a show of reliable support, says The Irish Independent:
“US president Joe Biden will arrive in Germany, hoping to fortify whatever legacy he has been able to forge with Europe. It will be his last major foreign trip in office. He is eager to solidify foundations under relationships and agreements that could be threatened if Donald Trump wins next month's election. That Mr Biden's stature has diminished since his late withdrawal from the 2024 White House race can hardly be denied. However, he can claim, with some legitimacy, to have kept a coalition together in standing up for democracy against the totalitarian threat of Russian president Vladimir Putin.”
Kyiv would already have lost without him
Handelsblatt praises Biden's achievements:
“Hardly any US politician embodies the memory of better times in transatlantic relations as does Biden, who experienced a large part of his political socialisation during the Cold War. In fact, the outgoing president has done his best and has undoubtedly achieved a great deal. Without his commitment within the Western alliance against the aggressor Russia, Ukraine would probably have been lost long ago. The cancellation of the all-important Ramstein summit because Biden was unable to attend due to the hurricanes shows once again that America is and remains the measure of all things from a European perspective, especially in the area of security policy, and that America continues to be the indispensable nation.”
Ukraine demoted
Radio Kommersant FM interprets the short visit as a sign of Washington's waning support for Kyiv:
“US President Joe Biden has changed tack and is now flying to Germany to fill the diplomatic vacuum that arose last week. He created this vacuum himself when he cancelled his Germany visit, which was supposed to be the highlight of a series of summits on Western aid to Ukraine, literally at the last minute. ... Instead of a diplomatic mega-marathon dedicated to Ukraine, there will be a modest, cosy farewell visit to an important European ally - nothing more. In this way, Washington is showing what place Kyiv actually occupies on its scale of priorities today.”