Joe Biden, the President of America, welcomed the Chancellor of Germany, Angela Merkel, on Thursday to the White House for what is possibly her final visit as the head of the state, noting Merkel’s first female chancellor, whose term lasted through four US Presidents. Joe Biden renewed its concerns to the Chancellor about a major, nearly complete Russia-to-Germany gas pipeline but stated they agreed Moscow mustn’t be allowed to use energy as a weapon.

At a late-afternoon press conference at the White House, President Biden said as he stood by the 2nd longest-serving chancellor in the history of Germany that on a personal note, he must tell Merkel, he will miss her seeing at their Summits.

Merkel’s farewell visit was shadowed by pressing issues and goodwill, as she met with President Biden to discuss differences over a major Russian gas pipeline and their country’s views on the ‘People’s republic of China’ as a rising world power.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel and US President Joe Biden vow to stand together against Moscow’s aggression as the two leaders meet in Washington pic.twitter.com/0cNengp7PD

— TRT World Now (@TRTWorldNow) July 16, 2021

One disagreement Merkel raised is a United States travel ban on Germany and other parts of Europe amid the coronavirus pandemic. Joe Biden said he anticipated providing an update on if his government would lift the ban in the upcoming days following an assessment from his COVID- advisers.

Principled Leadership

In a brief exchange with the media in the Oval Office, Biden said that they’re ready to dive in. Cooperation between Germany and the United States has been strong.

When asked to compare Merkel’s relationship with Joe Biden to hers with Donald Trump, the German chancellor remained diplomatic, expressing only that it was in any German leader’s interest to work with every US President. Moreover, she added with a smile, “that day was a very friendly exchange.” Mr. Biden lauded Angela Merkel for “strong, principled leadership” and for “never failing to defend human dignity.”

In a letter to Biden ahead of leader’s meeting, a Florida Republican, Senator Marco Rubio, raised concerns that the gas pipeline is already influencing United States ally, Ukraine. Rubio said the company that operates Nord Stream 2, Gazprom, “has already begun to reduce its use of pipelines in Ukraine” as the new pipeline approaches completion.

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