Biden receives Merkel: The thumbscrews remain

The signal of the visit: A new harmony between the USA and Germany after the years under Biden’s predecessor Trump. But one thing Biden did not do: remove all thumbscrews of his predecessor.

Friends, partners, same values, common goals. These are all terms that run through the public appearances of Angela Merkel and Joe Biden that have not been heard from the White House for a long time. The American President is doing everything possible to make the change from his predecessor Donald Trump to him audible, visible and tangible.

Focus on partnership

While the last US government characterized Europe, and especially Germany, as rivals right down to the enemy, Biden finds a level on which the decades-long partnership is at the center. But that makes it easier for Biden to clearly formulate and enforce his own American interests.

Nobody lost face in public when it came to the great conflict point Nord Stream 2, for example. And yet it became noticeable that there was a struggle that Biden demanded and received a high price. These prices are guarantees to Ukraine, apparently renegotiations with the Russian side.

A typical Biden day

A typical Biden day, you could say. This is how he works, this is how he has been weaving his political successes for decades. He clearly says what he wants, and then nothing more can be heard until things are negotiated behind the scenes and everything is settled. He does not force his counterparts to commit themselves publicly, but gives them the opportunity to present the agreement as a decision of their own. He also took the Chancellor with him and turned her farewell visit to Washington into a real working visit.

Apart from the fact that there really is a lot to clarify, one in Washington could not have imagined that an Angela Merkel would not work until the last day and still pound a few stakes that she leaves as an inheritance in the Chancellery and on those no one comes by, no matter who will rule there in a few months.

Maintain the personal level

Joe Biden also knows how to cultivate the important personal level and to find a level that fits his guest perfectly. It is well known that Angela Merkel does not value pomp. Apparently she does not enjoy an honorary formation in the military. The fact that she was the first European head of government to be invited to the White House, probably already.

An honorary doctorate from a university with a high scientific rank as a farewell gift, that also suits an Angela Merkel. Dinner in the White House – not a state dinner with elaborate and thoroughly choreographed minutes. Instead, Biden had invited companions, for example Hillary Clinton and Colin Powell, two former foreign ministers with whom Merkel shaped world politics.

All thumbscrews not yet filed

With this working and farewell visit, Joe Biden did a lot to dress up a few wounds from the past four years. But there is one thing he has not done so far: Remove all the thumbscrews of his predecessor. There are still punitive tariffs, even if you signal willingness to come to an agreement. And the demand for more engagement in armaments has not changed either.