The Washington PostDemocracy Dies in Darkness

Opinion Joe Biden: My trip to Europe is about America rallying the world’s democracies

By
June 5, 2021 at 6:56 p.m. EDT
Flags of the Group of Seven member nations are displayed during their meeting in British Columbia in 2018. (Delphine Touitou/AFP via Getty Images)

Joe Biden is president of the United States.

On Wednesday, I depart for Europe on the first foreign travel of my presidency. It is a trip stacked with meetings with many of our closest democratic partners — including the Group of Seven nations, our NATO allies and the leadership of the European Union — before concluding by meeting with Vladimir Putin. In this moment of global uncertainty, as the world still grapples with a once-in-a-century pandemic, this trip is about realizing America’s renewed commitment to our allies and partners, and demonstrating the capacity of democracies to both meet the challenges and deter the threats of this new age.