The United States and Germany are key NATO allies. WASHINGTON, July 15 (Reuters) - President Joe Biden welcomed outgoing German Chancellor Angela Merkel to the White House on Thursday to discuss disagreements over Russia and China as the two leaders seek to strengthen a relationship that suffered under former President Donald Trump. If they succeed, the alliance would send Merkel's bloc into opposition.(Adds quotes from Biden, Merkel after start of meeting)
MERKELS LATEST CHALLENGE LEADING LAME DUCK FREE
The center-left Social Democrats, the environmentalist Greens and the pro-business Free Democrats held their first round of talks Thursday on forming a possible coalition. 26 vote and the party's leader, Armin Laschet, has indicated his willingness to step aside. Merkel's Christian Democratic Union had its worst-ever election result in the Sept. She now remains in office in a caretaker capacity until a new government is formed, a process that could take weeks or even months.
She then delayed the visit until after last month's German election. Merkel was scheduled to visit in August, but the trip was postponed after the crisis in Afghanistan in which the Taliban seized power. ``Her predecessors started, but she certainly cemented it and brought it to new levels,'' he said. He cited security cooperations, defending Israel against criticism in the European Union and a tough stance on antisemitism. Oded Eran, a former Israeli ambassador to the European Union, said that Merkel built on the policies of her predecessors. She also was not scheduled to meet with Palestinian leaders in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. There were no plans for Merkel to meet Netanyahu, who is now Israel's opposition leader. But these differences have done little to upset the broader partnership. Germany supports the establishment of an independent Palestinian state, while both Netanyahu and Bennett do not.
Merkel and the former Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, had a sometimes cool relationship due to poor personal chemistry and differences over the Palestinian issue. Germany is Israel's largest trading partner in Europe and the German government has provided solid support to Israel during wars and diplomatic crises. But over the decades those ties have warmed. We're looking forward to strengthening it even more in business relations, science, education, health and of course, in security.`` Merkel called it a ``stroke of good fortune'' that after the tragedy of the Holocaust, in which Germany's Nazi leaders oversaw the murder of 6 million European Jews, ``it has been possible to reset and to re-establish relations between Germany and Israel to the extent that we have done.'' She said Israel's security ``will always be of central importance and a central topic of every German government.'' Israel was formed in the wake of the Holocaust in 1948 and the two countries only established diplomatic ties in 1965. It has become a true friendship thanks to your leadership. ``It has become more than just an alliance. ``The relationship between Germany and Israel has been strong, but in your term, it has never been stronger,'' Bennett said. Earlier, Bennett described her as a great friend of Israel.
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