Scholz, Biden to discuss Ukraine aid
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is meeting with US President Joe Biden today in Washington, DC.
The leaders’ conversation will focus on continued tensions in the Middle East and the Ukraine war. The US and Germany are Kyiv’s leading military backers; the two nations have sent Ukraine a vast array of weapons and other support.
The Biden Administration is struggling to overcome opposition to a new US package—Republicans recently blocked a White House request for about $60 billion for Kyiv, insisting on increased border security in return for approving the package. Scholz hopes to build on the momentum of EU leaders’ own success in securing new aid for Ukraine. Apart from his meeting with Biden, Scholz may speak with Republicans to convince them that Russia is not only a security threat to Europe, but also the US.
While the Biden and Scholz meeting is widely viewed as an opportunity to bolster transatlantic ties, it comes at an urgent moment as Scholz recently noted that Germany is not big enough to fill the gap should the US stop supplying weapons. There are also longer-term consequences—a potential Trump presidential win and a Ukrainian defeat could be disastrous for Europe’s security, as countries like Latvia or Moldova could be next.
