Biden, in Germany, Urges Unwavering Support for Ukraine

The president also joined Chancellor Olaf Scholz of Germany in expressing new optimism about the prospect for peace in the Middle East.

President Biden on Friday urged Germany and other Western allies not to waver in their support for Ukraine, using what may be his final trip to Europe as president to bolster the grueling fight against Russia’s invasion.

“German leaders had the wisdom to recognize a turning point in history, an assault on a fellow democracy, and also on principles that upheld 75 years of peace and security in Europe,” Mr. Biden said after receiving Germany’s highest honor during a ceremony at the Bellevue Palace in Berlin.

Mr. Biden added that the allies must continue to work tirelessly to “ensure that Ukraine prevails and Putin fails and NATO remains strong and more united than ever.”

“We’re headed into a very difficult winter,” he added. “We cannot let up. We cannot.”

Early in the afternoon, Mr. Biden and Chancellor Olaf Scholz briefly addressed reporters, praising each other for their cooperation on Ukraine and other issues. They also expressed renewed optimism that developments in the Middle East could finally yield a cease-fire in Gaza and the return of hostages.

The honor Mr. Biden received was Germany’s grand cross special class of the order of merit, which is only awarded to heads of state.

When Mr. Biden planned this one-day trip to Germany, the purpose seemed clear. Washington and Berlin would showcase their cooperation, particularly on helping Ukraine in its fight against Russia’s aggression.

But Israel’s killing of Yahya Sinwar, the leader of Hamas, appeared likely to intrude on the agenda. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel announced Mr. Sinwar’s death on Thursday, calling it “an important milestone in the sunset of Hamas’s evil rule in Gaza.”

In his appearance with Mr. Scholz on Friday, Mr. Biden called the death of Mr. Sinwar “a moment of justice” but also “an opportunity to seek a path to peace — a better future in Gaza without Hamas.”

Mr. Scholz said that in light of Mr. Sinwar’s death, “We hopefully now see a tangible prospect of a cease-fire in Gaza, an agreement that hopefully leads to the release of hostages held by Hamas.”

The news of Mr. Sinwar’s death arrived as Mr. Biden was still in the air, flying to Berlin on Air Force One for meetings with Chancellor Olaf Scholz and President Frank-Walter Steinmeier. Questions about the impact of the assassination dominated an in-flight briefing by Jake Sullivan, the president’s national security adviser, on Thursday evening.

Mr. Sullivan told reporters that Mr. Biden’s discussions with his German counterparts, which began on Friday morning — and a separate meeting in Berlin in the afternoon that would also include the leaders of France and Britain — came “against the backdrop of a pretty significant, very significant, day in the Middle East.”

President Biden and the leaders were expected to discuss the rapidly escalating situation in the Middle East, which has repeatedly produced disagreements between the United States and its European allies about how strongly to back Israel in its war against Hamas and other Iranian-backed groups in the region.

In a statement Thursday evening, Mr. Biden said that he would urge Mr. Netanyahu to now focus on the return of the remaining hostages that Hamas seized in last year’s Oct. 7 attacks, and on bringing the war against what is left of Hamas to an end.

“There is now the opportunity for a ‘day after’ in Gaza without Hamas in power and for a political settlement that provides a better future for Israelis and Palestinians alike,” Mr. Biden said. “Yahya Sinwar was an insurmountable obstacle to achieving all of those goals. That obstacle no longer exists.”

Mr. Biden’s visit to Germany was originally scheduled to take place a week earlier, but the trip was delayed to allow the president to remain in Washington when Hurricane Milton struck Florida.

Much of the pomp and pageantry of the original trip has been scrapped, including an official state luncheon, which itself was a pared-back version of the large dinners that usually mark ceremonial visits from heads of state.

But Mr. Biden and Mr. Scholz remain focused on Ukraine, where Russia’s invasion in February of 2022 has led to a brutal war, despite billions of dollars of aid from the United States and its allies.

In his last months in office, Mr. Biden wanted to thank Mr. Scholz for his support for Ukraine, with Berlin the second-largest contributor in money and weapons to Kyiv, after the United States.

Both men also share a concern that Western military efforts for Ukraine do not result in a direct war between NATO and a nuclear-armed Russia. Both have been criticized by Ukraine and some of its staunchest backers for being too slow to respond to Kyiv’s needs — for advanced tanks, air defenses, modern fighter jets and long-range missiles, among other requests.

The two leaders have argued that they have provided weaponry that Ukraine needs when it is ready to use it effectively.

But it is highly unlikely that either Mr. Biden or Mr. Scholz will suddenly agree to let Ukraine use their weapons to strike deep into Russian territory, as President Volodymyr Zelensky continues to demand.

Our Coverage of the War in Ukraine

• U.S. Aid: President Biden announced $425 million in aid to Ukraine as he prepared to travel to Germany to celebrate the unified front of Western allies. The security package includes munitions, armored vehicles and other weapons.
• Russia Claws Back Land: Moscow’s forces have been recapturing some villages and land taken in a Ukrainian incursion into Russia. The advances could undermine Kyiv’s hopes of pushing Russia to the negotiating table.
• A Deadly Month: September was the bloodiest month of the war for Russian forces in Ukraine, U.S. officials said, bringing the number of Russia’s dead and wounded to more than 600,000 troops since the war began.

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