Chancellor Scholz's Low-Key Trip To Washington

Washington D.C./03.03.23/Turan:   With no traveling press, no news conferences, not even a White House arrival ceremony, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz took a quiet trip to Washington Friday afternoon to talk with President Joe Biden, to discuss Ukraine support, China, and other global issues, TURAN's Washington correspondent reports from the White House.

Biden and Scholz spent over an hour together in the Oval Office, where the two leaders tried to project a united front in support for Ukraine.

"You helped Ukraine meet its basic needs, like food, health, heating.... And you continue to give them -- put -- maintain the pressure on Putin.  And it is undercutting his ability to fight this war." Biden told his guest.

Scholz added that it was important for Germany and the U.S. to aid Ukraine:  "And it's really important that we acted together, that we organized our lockstep, and that we made it feasible that we can give the necessary support to Ukraine during all this time."

The two leaders did not respond to shouted questions from reporters in the Oval Office, and they were not scheduled to hold a joint presser that has typically accompanied foreign leader visits to the White House.

"At the one-year mark of Russia’s brutal invasion of Ukraine, the leaders discussed ongoing efforts to provide security, humanitarian, economic, and political assistance to Ukraine and the importance of maintaining global solidarity with the people of Ukraine," the White House said in a readout.

"They reiterated their commitment to impose costs on Russia for its aggression for as long as necessary. The leaders also exchanged perspectives on other global issues."

Scholz last visited Washington in February 2022, just days before Putin's troops crossed the Ukrainian border.

Alex Raufoglu