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President Joe Biden and German Chancellor Angela Merkel were meeting Thursday in the White House, but they weren’t expected to announce any breakthroughs on key issues, even as discussions sounded more cordial than during the Trump era.
Biden and Merkel were slated to hold a joint press conference at 4:15 p.m. Eastern.
The U.S. for years has expressed opposition to the Nord Stream 2 natural gas
NGQ21,
pipeline currently being built between Germany and Russia, while Merkel hasn’t matched American tough talk toward China.
In addition, the German leader hasn’t supported waiving intellectual-property protections for COVID-19 vaccines, while the Biden administration decided to take that position in May, saying such waivers would help end the COVID pandemic.
But Biden has changed the U.S. tone toward Germany after former President Donald Trump’s criticism of the NATO ally on issues such as military spending and trade.
“Mending US-Germany relations won’t be simple. The countries disagree on a lot, including China,” said Ian Bremmer, president of Eurasia Group, a research and consulting firm, in a tweet on Thursday.
Protesters calling for greater global COVID-19 vaccine access unfurl a banner featuring German Chancellor Angela Merkel in front of the White House on Tuesday.
Getty Images
Merkel is the first European leader to visit Biden in person at the White House since he took office, but the first world leader to make such a visit was Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga, as part of the Biden administration’s effort to counter Beijing. Her trip coincides with fatal flooding in Germany and Belgium following heavy storms.
DJIA,
traded mixed Thursday as investors weighed Capitol Hill testimony from Federal Reserve chief Jerome Powell, along with earnings reports and economic releases.
