WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden is traveling to Germany on Thursday and will visit Angola in the first week of December, postponing rescheduled visits so he can remain in Washington to oversee the federal response to Hurricane Milton, which hit Florida.
The White House confirmed that Biden will leave for his brief trip to Berlin on Thursday. It offers him an opportunity to exchange ideas with his key ally, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, about their countries’ support for Ukraine in the war with Russia, as the conflict reaches another critical moment.
Biden’s original itinerary for the rescheduled trip included meeting with allied nations about the war in Ukraine at an American military base in Germany before traveling on to Angola.
The White House says the meeting of representatives of allied nations, partners of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group, will instead take place virtually next month. Still, the war in Ukraine will loom huge during Biden’s stay in Berlin this week.
Biden spoke by phone with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Wednesday, but they will not meet while the president is in Germany.
The two leaders discussed Zelensky’s “victory plan” shortly after the Ukrainian leader presented it to his parliament. Zelensky is due to present the five-point plan to the European Council on Thursday.
Zelensky had previously spoken to Biden about the proposal.
The plan includes an invitation for Ukraine to join NATO and permission to apply Western-supplied long-range missiles to attack military targets deep in Russian territory – moves that have so far met with reluctance from Kiev’s allies.
The White House declined to comment on the plan on Wednesday.
“We will let the Ukrainians talk about their plan for victory,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters. “We will continue to show our support for Ukrainians on the battlefield as they continue to beat back Russia.”
Zelensky said in a statement following the call that he also spoke with Biden about the U.S. and Ukraine possibly exploring ways to produce weapons together.
The Biden administration also announced $425 million in additional military aid to Ukraine, bringing the total to more than $64 billion in the two and a half years since the Russian invasion. Wednesday’s package includes surface-to-air missiles to protect Ukrainian infrastructure from Russian attacks, as well as long-range missiles and artillery to support Ukraine’s war effort.
Biden and Scholz recently spoke by phone about the need for the countries to “continue our strong cooperation on geopolitical priorities, including supporting Ukraine’s defense against Russian aggression,” according to the White House.
Jean-Pierre said the trip was critical for Biden, also because of German aid in a complicated hostage exchange with Russia.
“The president really wanted to travel to Germany to thank Chancellor Scholz directly,” she said.
Scholz said in a speech to the German Bundestag on Wednesday that he was looking forward to Biden’s visit. “I would like to say that … President Biden represents an incredible improvement in cooperation in recent years,” Scholz said, adding that he was grateful for the “good cooperation” with the Democratic president.
There is great concern in Europe about what next month’s US presidential election could mean for Ukraine.
Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic nominee, agrees with Biden on the need to continue forceful economic and military support for Ukraine. Republican Donald Trump has said he would quickly end the war with Russia if he wins back the White House.
Trump’s running mate, Ohio Sen. JD Vance, said the plan would include establishing a “demilitarized zone” and that Ukraine would not retake Russian-occupied territory and agree not to join NATO.
Scholz was one of Biden’s closest global allies.
In addition to his forceful support for Ukraine, Scholz played a crucial role in freeing Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, company security officer Paul Whelan and others from Russian prisons as part of a multinational prisoner swap.
In the largest prisoner exchange in post-Soviet history, Scholz agreed to the release of Vadim Krasikov, a Russian convicted of the 2019 killing of a 40-year-old Georgian citizen who fought against Russian troops in Chechnya and later sought asylum in Germany .
Biden has not visited Africa since taking office in early 2021.
Jean-Pierre said the upcoming visit to Luanda aims to “recognize Angola’s role as a strategic partner and regional leader and discuss enhanced cooperation in the areas of security, health and economic partnerships.”
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AP writers Geir Moulson in Berlin and Colleen Long in Washington contributed.
