German Chancellor Scholz to Meet Trump at the White House on Thursday

The German Chancellor, who assumed office on May 6, will meet for the first time with President Trump this Thursday at the White House, as stated by German government spokesperson Stefan Cornelius. The meeting comes during Scholz’s first official visit to the United States next week amidst tensions related to Ukraine and the trade war initiated by Donald Trump, who has imposed or threatened tariffs on allies. Both leaders will discuss trade issues, the situation in the Middle East, ‘Russia’s aggressive war against Ukraine,’ and relations between their two countries, clarified the representative. Scholz and Trump have already spoken several times over the phone. Due to the importance of exports to Germany’s economy, Germany is particularly concerned about the impact of Washington’s trade war. The first European economy has been experiencing a two-year recession and has essentially been stagnant since 2018. Germany is also the largest supplier of military aid to Kiev after the United States. Trump claims he wants to end Russia’s large-scale attack on Ukraine as soon as possible, which has lasted over three years. Meanwhile, Europeans, while aiming to impose stricter economic sanctions on Russia to force it into a ceasefire in Ukraine, struggle with Trump’s controversial stance, characterized by impatience and threats without action. The German Chancellor pledged on Wednesday to assist Kiev in producing long-range missiles, both in Ukraine and Germany, that could potentially reach Russian soil.