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Confidential meeting with Joe Biden - Olaf Scholz for a visit to Washington

2023-03-03 17:14:45Kosova&Bota SHKRUAR NGA REDAKSIA VOX
Confidential meeting with Joe Biden - Olaf Scholz for a visit to Washington
Biden and Scholz - are there serious disagreements in the US - Germany reports?

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is on a short visit to Washington. With President Biden, he will talk about the conflict in Ukraine, about the attitude towards China and American subsidies.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is on a short working visit to Washington on Friday. He has with him his speech about the "turning point" that he gave in the Bundestag. In talks with US President Joseph Biden on Friday, the chancellor will need concrete evidence that he was really serious when he promised to change the course of German policy after the Russian attack on Ukraine, writes the Reuters agency.

Otherwise, according to government circles in Berlin, it is a question of a peaceful and confidential meeting with the American president - in a possibly private atmosphere - about the situation and the development of events in Ukraine, but also about the concerns of Europeans about the impact of American subsidies on Europe's economy .

The unusual arrangement of the visit without being accompanied by reporters immediately sparked fresh speculation about differences in transatlantic opinion - especially after Biden's national security adviser, Jack Sullivan, made it clear again in an interview that the US will deliver Abrams tanks to Ukraine – belatedly – ​​only because Scholz insisted on it.

Not a sign of crisis

"But this kind of travel arrangement is not a sign of any crisis in the reports," Suda David-Wilp, head of the German Marshall Fund (GMF) office, told Reuters. It's better to say that Scholz and Biden want to use the opportunity to deepen their personal relationship. Washington still looks to Berlin as the main force for military coordination in Europe, she says.

David-Wilp also relativizes reports of disagreements between the two governments. "I know the chancellor's office and the White House are in constant communication." Scholz and Biden's teams are working closely together.

The fact is that it has only been two weeks since the US sent a clear transatlantic signal - with its "strongest" presence yet at the Munich Security Conference. A third of the US Senate was in Munich and praised Germany for "milestones" and promises to supply Ukraine with its Leopard main battle tanks.

"But there were still irritations in Washington because the impression was created that the United States was delaying tank deliveries," says Marko Overhaus, a US expert at the German Institute for International and Security Affairs (SVP).

Ukraine and China

In the short term, the US president and the German chancellor must clarify now how to proceed in the case of Ukraine and how reckless communication, such as those with tanks, can be avoided in the future.

"But there are also medium- and long-term issues, some of which are very sensitive: like the reconstruction of Ukraine, the prosecution of war criminals, but also the question of what the political process for ending the war might look like," says Overhouse. Therefore, high confidentiality is expected in the conversation.

The SVP expert expects that the implementation of the "turning point" in Germany may turn into a problem for the American side. "There's a lot to explain."

In addition, Scholz and Biden may discuss future relations with China. The US government has warned for days that China may supply Russia with weapons. While the chancellor has called on China not to send weapons to Russia.

"Here the question can be asked, what is the will in Germany and Europe to impose sanctions on China in such a case", says Overhaus. The government in Berlin has called on China not to send weapons, but it is more reserved because so far there is no evidence that China has actually crossed a red line and sent weapons to Russia.

Subsidies

According to the wishes of the German economy, Scholz should also address the subject of American subsidies in Washington. "The German economy is looking forward to the chancellor's visit to the US," said Peter Adrian, head of the German Chamber of Industry and Commerce (DIHK).

"The German government must resolutely demand fair conditions for competition in the negotiations," he says. The goal should be to exclude discrimination against German companies, given the package of subsidies that contradict the rules of the World Trade Organization. Biden promised this, but the implementation of the rules by the American side has pitfalls.

And as much as the German government welcomes the American commitment to climate protection: "There are a lot of people in Berlin who are really worried," says GMF chief David Wilp./ DW


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