President Joe Biden hosted a White House visit from German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Friday, using the occasion to reiterate vows of inexhaustible military support for Ukraine to maintain pressure on Moscow for “as long as it takes.” However, besides the usual rhetoric and exchange of pleasantries, the leaders shared few details of their talks and took no questions from reporters.
“I want to thank you, Olaf, for your strong and steady leadership,” Biden told the chancellor in the Oval Office. “I mean that sincerely. It’s made a world of difference. You stepped up to provide critical military support. And I would argue that beyond the military support, the moral support you’ve given Ukrainians has been profound.”
Biden also hailed increases in German defense spending, and praised Scholz for “diversifying away from Russian energy sources.”
Legendary US investigative journalist Seymour Hersh reported last month that US forces blew up the Nord Stream pipelines in September at Biden’s direction. The sabotage cut off the conduits that carried Russian natural gas from Russia to Germany and other parts of Western Europe through the Baltic Sea.