Politics Biden leaves Berlin again after short visit

US President Joe Biden has left Berlin after a lightning visit lasting around 20 hours. Biden flew out of the capital in his Air Force One government plane in the early evening. During the day, he had met with Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier and Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) for talks and received an order of merit. Together with Scholz, Biden also met with French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer. Biden only arrived in Berlin late on Thursday evening.

The 81-year-old was originally due to travel to Berlin a week earlier, but canceled the trip at short notice due to a hurricane in the USA. The rescheduled visit now had a slimmed-down program: a short working visit instead of a state visit. It was Biden's first bilateral visit to Germany in his almost four years in office.

In Berlin, Biden's flying visit led to a large-scale police operation. Large areas of the city center were cordoned off to normal public traffic. Biden is one of the politicians for whom the highest security level applies worldwide.

SDA