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Pool

NATO allies took a <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2021/06/14/joe-biden-live-updates/#link-3PSTAF6QLNCTZBAPSW6P2K5UGM" target=_blank>far more aggressive posture toward China</a> than in years past in a communique released at their summit Monday in Brussels, voicing concerns about China’s expanding nuclear ambitions and “assertive” behavior.

Biden told reporters that the NATO treaty “is rock solid and unshakable. It’s a sacred commitment” after meeting with allies at the headquarters of the 30-member military alliance that has long been focused on the threat posed by Russia. NATO allies announced that they will gather in Spain next year.

Biden also met on the sidelines of the summit with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan at a time of strained relations between the two countries.

In the coming days, Biden will participate in a meeting with European leaders before finishing his first overseas trip as president with a <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2021/06/12/putin-biden-interview/?itid=lk_inline_manual_49">high-stakes encounter Wednesday with Russian President Vladimir Putin</a>.

Although Biden’s presence was embraced at the NATO meeting, <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/disagreements-flare-among-nato-allies-despite-relief-at-bidens-arrival/2021/06/14/3b7b0f6c-cd09-11eb-a7f1-52b8870bef7c_story.html">deep divisions still remain</a> about how much to focus on Beijing as well as concerns that Biden’s unilateral approach to the Afghanistan pullout was similar to Trump’s.

Biden said Queen Elizabeth II <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/president-biden-meets-the-queen-at-windsor-castle/2021/06/13/c9a85a58-cc71-11eb-a224-bd59bd22197c_story.html">reminded him of his mother</a> after he had tea with the British monarch at Windsor Castle, his last set-piece event before concluding the first leg of his overseas trip on Sunday.

Violent Extremism

President Biden said Monday that while foreign leaders were shocked as a mob of President Donald Trump’s supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 to stop the affirmation of the Biden’s win, their confidence in the values of the United States remains.

“The leaders I’m dealing with in NATO and the G-7 are leaders who know our recent history, know generically the character of the American people and know where the vast center of the public stands, not Democrat or Republican but who we are,” he said at a news conference in Brussels. “We’re a decent, honorable nation.”

“And I think that they have seen things happen as we have that shocked them and surprised them,” Biden added.

The approval <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2021/06/10/pew-global-approval-biden-us/?itid=lk_inline_manual_12" target=_blank>rating</a> of the United States on the world stage declined during the Trump presidency, and Biden campaigned on returning the United States to a more lofty standing. However, Biden, along with the Democratic Party, have been deeply frustrated with some GOP lawmakers’ continued fealty to Trump. One of the most recent ways that continued loyalty has surfaced has been in Republican lack of support for a bipartisan, independent commission to investigate the Jan. 6 insurrection, which left five people dead and 140 law enforcement officers injured.

Biden has repeatedly expressed his belief that the American people — including those who are more conservative — do not largely align with GOP lawmakers.

“I think it’s appropriate to say that the Republican Party is vastly diminished in numbers,” Biden said. “The leadership of the Republican Party is fractured, and the Trump wing of the party is the bulk of the party. But it makes up a significant minority of the American people.”

According to the most recent Gallup <a href="https://news.gallup.com/poll/15370/party-affiliation.aspx" target=_blank>poll</a>, 29 percent of Americans identify as Republicans, with 33 percent identifying as Democrats and 35 percent as independents.

Eugene Scott

Biden indicated Monday that he is open to Ukraine becoming a member of the NATO alliance but stressed that it must first meet certain criteria, including rooting out corruption.

“School’s out on that question. It remains to be seen. In the meantime, we will do all that we can to put Ukraine in the position to be able to continue to resist Russian physical aggression,” the president told reporters at a news conference in Brussels after a day of meetings with leaders from the alliance.

In 2014, Russia annexed Crimea, triggering international outrage.

In recent days, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has thanked the Group of Seven nations for their help as they have called on Russia to withdraw its troops from the Ukraine border.

In its joint communique, the NATO members reaffirmed the decision made in 2008 about Ukraine’s process for becoming a member. “The success of wide-ranging, sustainable, and irreversible reforms, including combating corruption, promoting an inclusive political process, and decentralisation reform, based on democratic values, respect for human rights, minorities, and the rule of law, will be crucial in laying the groundwork for a prosperous and peaceful Ukraine,” the communique said.

Tweets from various entities in Ukraine on Monday suggested there had been a change in policy, but Biden made it clear that was not the case.

He stressed that the decision is not his alone but will “depend on the alliance and how they vote.”

Donna Cassata

Joe Biden

Biden said Monday that the United States “will respond in kind” if Russia does not cooperate on the issue of cybersecurity, although he declined to specify what in particular he plans to discuss with Putin during their meeting later this week.

“I’m going to make clear to President Putin that there are areas where we can cooperate, if he chooses,” Biden told reporters in Brussels. “And if he chooses not to cooperate and acts in a way that he has in the past relative to cybersecurity and some other activities, then we will respond. We will respond in kind.”

Biden’s remarks come after Russia, the U.S. and 23 other countries <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/russia-us-un-cyber-norms/2021/06/12/9b608cd4-866b-11eb-bfdf-4d36dab83a6d_story.html?itid=lk_inline_manual_28">recently reaffirmed</a> that states should not hack each other’s critical infrastructure in peacetime or shelter cyber criminals who conduct attacks on other countries.

But Russia, which was among the states originally agreeing to the norms at the United Nations, has violated them repeatedly over the years, and experts are skeptical those violations will halt unless the U.S. and its allies impose far more serious consequences.

During his remarks Monday, Biden said the U.S. will “see if we can” cooperate with Russia and also “make it clear what the red lines are” on areas of disagreement.

Of Putin, Biden said: “He’s bright, he’s tough, and I have found that he is a — as they say, when you used to play ball, a worthy adversary.”

“But the fact is that I will be happy to talk with you when it’s over, not before, about what the discussion will entail,” he added.

Biden was also asked Monday about an interview last week in which Putin <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2021/06/12/putin-biden-interview/?itid=lk_inline_manual_33" target=_blank>laughed off the idea that he could be considered a “killer.”</a> Biden had described him as such in an interview in March.

“In answer to the first question, I’m laughing, too,” Biden said with a laugh at Monday’s news conference in Brussels.

He began to answer more fully, before stopping for a full five seconds.

“The answer is, I believe he has in the past essentially acknowledged that he was — that there certain things that he would do or did do,” Biden said of Putin. “But look, when I was asked that question on air, I answered it honestly. But it’s not much of a — I don’t think it matters a whole lot in terms of this next meeting we’re about to have.”

Felicia Sonmez

NATO leaders condemned Russia over human rights abuses and election interference and called on the country to change its behavior toward its neighbors and other countries.

“We face multifaceted threats, systemic competition from assertive and authoritarian powers, as well as growing security challenges to our countries and our citizens from all strategic directions,” the alliance said in its communique. “Russia’s aggressive actions constitute a threat to Euro-Atlantic security; terrorism in all its forms and manifestations remains a persistent threat to us all. State and non-state actors challenge the rules-based international order and seek to undermine democracy across the globe.”

NATO said it has worked for more than 25 years to build a partnership with Russia with the NATO-Russia Council (NRC) but to little avail. The communique detailed all the ways in which Russia has behaved inappropriately toward other countries.

“Until Russia demonstrates compliance with international law and its international obligations and responsibilities, there can be no return to ‘business as usual,’” the communique said.

NATO said it wasn’t interested in a confrontation with Russia and doesn’t pose any threat to it. But the alliance noted that Russia’s “multi-domain military build-up” and assertiveness and provocative actions — including near NATO borders — increasingly threaten the security of other countries.

Russia’s behavior toward other Eastern European countries such as Ukraine, Georgia and Moldova was criticized; it also was assailed for its 2014 annexation of Crimea. And a call for Russia to withdraw its forces from countries and cease its human rights abuses in these countries also was highlighted.

The communique addressed Russia’s continued interference in elections and said its widespread disinformation campaigns were of great concern.

“We remain open to periodic, focused and meaningful dialogue with a Russia willing to engage on the basis of reciprocity in the NRC with a view to avoid misunderstanding, miscalculation and unintended escalation, and to increase transparency and predictability,” the communique said.

Jens Stoltenberg, NATO’s secretary general, said he’s not concerned about former president Donald Trump or another politician critical of U.S. involvement in NATO running for president in 2024 because the past four years showed that NATO can survive.

NATO “goes beyond individual political leaders. We can weather political winds and different storms and so, if anything, it just proves the importance of building a strong NATO,” Stoltenberg said. “There will be different political leaders elected in many allied countries in the years to follow.”

Stoltenberg also said he welcomed Biden’s expressed strong commitment to NATO and the bipartisan support for NATO in the United States.

“I cannot tell you who will be the next political leaders in 13 NATO allied countries, but I can tell you that what we have seen is there is the strength of strong institutions like NATO, which can deal with also different political leaders that have different opinions about many issues, as we have seen over many years,” he added.

Colby Itkowitz

Putin said he would be open to discussing a prisoner swap between the United States and Russia when he and Biden hold their summit, claiming that the number of Russians held in U.S. prisons far exceeds the number of Americans held in Russian facilities.

“I know that we have certain U.S. citizens who are in prison, have been convicted, found guilty. But if one considers the number of Russian Federation citizens who are in U.S. prisons, then these numbers don’t even compare. They cannot be compared,” Putin said in an interview with NBC News.

Two U.S. Marines are among those being held in Russian prisons — Paul Whelan and Trevor Reed. Reed was sentenced to nine years in prison after he was accused of hitting a police officer in 2019. In the interview, Putin called him a “drunk” and a “troublemaker” who started a fight with an officer.

Reed’s parents, appearing Monday morning on NBC’s “Today” show, called those characterizations “offensive and untrue.” They contend that their son is innocent but also said they would be happy if Biden agreed to a prisoner swap to get their son home.

“As far as possible negotiations on the subject, sure, it can be talked about,” Putin said. “Obviously we’ll raise the matter of our citizens who are in prison in the U.S. Yes, it can be a specific conversation.” He noted, however, that the Biden administration seems less open to the idea.

Putin called the charges against Reed justified, saying he violated the law. “What would have happened if he’d fought a cop, if he’d hit a cop in your country? He would have been shot dead on that spot, and that’s the end of it. Isn’t that the case?” the Russian leader said.

In their communique released Monday, allies stressed that NATO would remain focused on Afghanistan after the U.S.-led troop withdrawal.

“Withdrawing our troops does not mean ending our relationship with Afghanistan,” the document said. “We will now open a new chapter. We affirm our commitment to continue to stand with Afghanistan, its people, and its institutions in promoting security and upholding the hard-won gains of the last 20 years.”

Some allies have voiced disappointment in Biden’s decision to withdraw U.S. troops, saying it was done with limited consultation and risks a recapture of Afghanistan by the Taliban.

“Recalling our previous commitments, NATO will continue to provide training and financial support to the Afghan National Defence and Security Forces, including through the Afghan National Army Trust Fund,” the NATO communique said.

The document also said it would provide transitional funding to “ensure continued functioning of Hamid Karzai International Airport” and work in other ways to prevent Afghanistan from becoming “a safe haven for terrorists.”

John Wagner

NATO summit in Brussels

In its communique released Monday, the NATO allies took a far more aggressive posture on China than in years past, writing that its “stated ambitions and assertive behaviour present systemic challenges to the rules-based international order.”

“China is rapidly expanding its nuclear arsenal with more warheads and a larger number of sophisticated delivery systems to establish a nuclear triad,” the communique said. “It is opaque in implementing its military modernisation and its publicly declared military-civil fusion strategy. It is also cooperating militarily with Russia, including through participation in Russian exercises in the Euro-Atlantic area.”

The NATO allies also voiced concern with “China’s frequent lack of transparency and use of disinformation.”

“We call on China to uphold its international commitments and to act responsibly in the international system, including in the space, cyber, and maritime domains, in keeping with its role as a major power,” the communique said.

Biden has pushed U.S. allies to focus more on China in addition to Russia. During the Group of Seven summit in England, he also sought to <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/queen-elizabeth-biden-g7/2021/06/13/078574de-c7cf-11eb-8708-64991f2acf28_story.html?itid=lk_inline_manual_8&itid=lk_inline_manual_71">sharpen China-related discussions</a>.

Biden G7

Democrats are trying to score political points by touting Biden’s tighter relationships with U.S. allies than those of President Donald Trump, as evidenced by a new video released Monday by the Democratic National Committee.

The <a href="https://twitter.com/DNCWarRoom/status/1404429515837820935">video </a>opens with a footage of Trump’s <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2017/05/26/breaking-down-trumps-shove-the-internet-debates-and-montenegros-leader-shrugs/?itid=lk_inline_manual_75">infamous shove</a> of Dusko Markovic, the leader of Montenegro, a small Balkan nation, at the 2017 NATO meeting in Brussels, the first attended by Trump as president. It includes images of other awkward moments with world leaders, and commentary that Trump seemed to enjoy meeting more with authoritarian figures.

The video then cuts to footage of news coverage about Biden “repairing relationships one handshake at a time” during the three-day meeting of the Group of Seven summit in England that ended Sunday.

Biden is seen shaking hands with French President Emmanuel Macron, smiling at a meeting with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, and engaged in what appears to be a serious conversation with German Chancellor Angela Merkel (the latter of whom Trump reportedly called “a loser”).

“The contrast couldn’t be clearer,” the video asserts.

Mitt Romney

As Biden continues to meet with other world leaders abroad, U.S. lawmakers are set to return to Washington on Monday facing a pivotal week for one of his leading domestic priorities: the future of infrastructure spending.

Bipartisan negotiations are continuing and work is proceeding to advance a flurry of bills to improve the nation’s roads, bridges, pipes, ports and Internet connections.

At the center of the debate is an infrastructure compromise brokered by 10 Senate Democrats and Republicans. The bloc, largely composed of moderates, now faces the new, tough task of selling their deal to both fellow lawmakers and the White House, just days after talks between Biden and another group of GOP leaders reached a political impasse.

“We’re talking to folks, one by one, and just asking folks to be open,” said Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) in advance of the new plan’s release.

<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/us-policy/2021/06/14/congress-white-house-infrastructure/?itid=lk_inline_manual_85">Read the full story</a>

Tony Romm

NATO Summit in Brussels, Belgium - 14 Jun 2021

Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo, as leader of the host country for the NATO gathering, welcomed Biden to the meeting Monday, saying his “presence emphasizes the renewal of the transatlantic partnership.”

The comment was a thinly veiled contrast to Biden’s predecessor, President Donald Trump, who questioned at times why the United States should protect smaller countries and constantly needled other NATO members to boost their defense spending.

NATO secretary general Jens Stoltenberg also spoke of “a new chapter in transatlantic relations” in remarks before reporters were ushered out of the meeting.

“No nation and no continent can deal with these challenges alone, but Europe and North America are not alone,” Stoltenberg said. “We stand together with NATO.”

Before the start of the meeting, Biden entered the room, fist-bumped Romanian President Klaus Iohannis in a brief greeting and later spoke with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson.

Biden also spoke at some length with Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdogan, with whom he has a meeting scheduled later Monday, and more briefly with France’s president, Emmanuel Macron.

BELGIUM-NATO-SUMMIT

Biden and leaders of other NATO member nations posed Monday for a traditional “family photo” ahead of their discussions at the military alliance’s headquarters in Brussels.

They gathered on a gray marble floor and stood on small spots — several feet apart, for social distancing purposes — marked with the abbreviation of their country. Biden was positioned in the center of the front row.

A voice over a loudspeaker asked the leaders to remove their masks and look at the camera for 15 seconds.

Ahead of the photo, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg greeted each leader individually, often with a fist bump or elbow bump. Biden was the last of the 30 members to enter the hall.

Biden met earlier Monday with three Baltic leaders: Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas, Latvian President Egils Levits and Lithuania President Gitanas Nauseda.

SWITZERLAND-US-RUSSIA-POLITICS-DIPLOMACY-SUMMIT

ST. IVES, England — President Biden plans to press Vladimir Putin in <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/biden-putin-geneva/2021/05/25/8942cda8-bd5e-11eb-9c90-731aff7d9a0d_story.html?itid=lk_inline_manual_2&itid=lk_inline_manual_103">their coming meeting </a>to rein in ransomware attacks launched from Russian soil. He is expected to demand Russia withdraw from Ukraine. He will almost certainly tell the Russian president to stop interfering in U.S. elections.

But those demands raise a question that is vexing U.S. policymakers and the United States’ European allies: What happens if Putin ignores the demands, as he has signaled he will do?

Michael McFaul, who was U.S. ambassador to Russia under President Barack Obama, said more must come out of Wednesday’s face-to-face meeting than a simple discussion. But Putin is unlikely to agree substantially to cut back his aggressive activities, diplomats say, and may not even acknowledging they are occurring.

<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/biden-putin-summit/2021/06/12/cf171694-c96c-11eb-93fa-9053a95eb9f2_story.html?utm_campaign=wp_politics_am&utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter&wpisrc=nl_politics&carta-url=https%3A%2F%2Fs2.washingtonpost.com%2Fcar-ln-tr%2F3399781%2F60c73e269d2fdae3027dd60b%2F596d5ba9ae7e8a079241a8c1%2F9%2F58%2F60c73e269d2fdae3027dd60b&itid=lk_inline_manual_106">Read the full story</a>

Ashley Parker

Anne Gearan

Isabelle Khurshudyan

Belgium NATO Summit

Biden reaffirmed the commitment of the United States to its NATO allies shortly after arriving Monday at the headquarters of the military alliance in Brussels, where he is meeting with leaders of other member nations.

“NATO is critically important,” Biden said after he was greeted by Jens Stoltenberg, NATO’s secretary general, with an elbow bump. “Article 5, we take as a sacred obligation.”

Under Article 5, an attack on one NATO ally is considered an attack on all allies. The tenet was at times questioned under President Donald Trump.

“I just want all of Europe to know that the United States is there,” Biden told Stoltenberg. “I just want to thank you for your leadership.”

Biden also called NATO “essential for America.”

In brief remarks, the U.S. president also spoke of the challenges posed to the alliance by Russia and China.

“There is a growing recognition over the last couple years that we have new challenges,” he said. “We have Russia, which is acting in a way that is not consistent with what we had hoped, and we have China.”

Aside from the NATO summit itself, Biden’s itinerary while in Brussels includes some smaller meetings with leaders, including President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/biden-erdogan-bilateral-nato/2021/06/13/4ef0c9ee-cc6c-11eb-8cd2-4e95230cfac2_story.html?itid=lk_inline_manual_116">at a time of strained relations</a>.

Later Monday, Biden plans to hold a news conference.

Turkey US NATO

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan took the high road at a Sunday news conference as he left home for a meeting with Biden at the NATO summit in Brussels, dismissing “rumors” about the state of the U.S.-Turkey relationship and suggesting they “leave all these behind and speak about what we can do together.”

The same Erdogan last month accused Biden of having “bloody hands” for selling arms to Israel, in comments that the State Department called antisemitic.

The last time Biden met with the Turkish leader, during a vice-presidential visit to Ankara in 2016, it was to deny Erdogan’s charges that the United States had helped plot <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2017/07/17/turkeys-erdogan-turned-a-failed-coup-into-his-path-to-greater-power/?itid=lk_inline_manual_4&itid=lk_inline_manual_122">a coup attempt against him</a>. In Istanbul earlier that year, Biden publicly criticized Erdogan’s arrests of journalists, political opponents and academics.

<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/biden-erdogan-bilateral-nato/2021/06/13/4ef0c9ee-cc6c-11eb-8cd2-4e95230cfac2_story.html?itid=lk_inline_manual_123">Read the full story</a>

Karen DeYoung

Bidens meet with Queen Elizabeth II at Windsor Castle

CARBIS BAY, England — President Biden said Queen Elizabeth II reminded him of his mother after he had tea with the British monarch at Windsor Castle, his last set-piece event on Sunday before concluding the United Kingdom leg of his overseas trip.

After attending a three-day Group of Seven summit in Carbis Bay, in southwestern England, Biden headed to Windsor Castle, where the queen has spent much of her time since the pandemic began. Biden and first lady Jill Biden arrived on Marine One.

After the meeting with Elizabeth, Biden, 78, told reporters that the 95-year-old monarch reminded him of his mother.

<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/president-biden-meets-the-queen-at-windsor-castle/2021/06/13/c9a85a58-cc71-11eb-a224-bd59bd22197c_story.html?itid=lk_inline_manual_129">Read the full story</a>

Karla Adam

Joe Biden, Jill Biden

CARBIS BAY, England — As Group of Seven leaders wrapped up their three-day summit here on Sunday, President Biden said democratic governments face a defining challenge: to show they can meet tests such as global health crises and climate change better than autocracies such as China and Russia.

“I think we’re in a contest, not with China per se, but a contest with autocrats, autocratic governments around the world, as to whether or not democracies can compete with them in a rapidly changing 21st century,” Biden told reporters during the first news conference of his first foreign trip as president.

He cited China and Russia for reprobation after working here to enlist U.S. allies in what he has repeatedly cast as the existential battle of the 21st century.

<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/queen-elizabeth-biden-g7/2021/06/13/078574de-c7cf-11eb-8708-64991f2acf28_story.html?itid=lk_inline_manual_135">Read the full story</a>

Tyler Pager

John Hudson

Abdullah Abdullah, Antony Blinken

With fewer than 100 days before the Sept. 11 deadline that Biden has set for the withdrawal of all U.S. forces from Afghanistan, allies in the two-decade-long war are anxiously awaiting U.S. guidance on what comes next.

[<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2021/06/10/nato-prepares-friendlier-president-and-shifted-under-skeptical-one/?itid=lk_inline_manual_139">NATO prepares for a friendlier president — and shifted under a skeptical one</a>]

The administration has issued broad commitments to maintaining its diplomatic presence and massive aid programs there, and to keeping terrorists from using Afghanistan as a launchpad for global attacks.

But NATO and other partners are increasingly concerned about the details, from how Kabul’s international airport and the main medical facility that diplomats and aid workers depend on will be kept operational and secure to where <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/afghanistan-withdrawl-qaeda-us-counterterrorism/2021/04/17/4a383b46-9eb1-11eb-8a83-3bc1fa69c2e8_story.html?itid=lk_inline_manual_4&itid=lk_inline_manual_141">counterterrorism surveillance and other assets</a> will be based outside Afghanistan.

<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/nato-allies-afghanistan-withdrawal-security-taliban/2021/06/12/f0c7566a-c952-11eb-a11b-6c6191ccd599_story.html?itid=lk_inline_manual_142">Read the full story</a>

FILES-US-UKRAINE-RUSSIA-DIPLOMACY-BIDEN

KYIV, Ukraine — Ukraine’s political radar is always fine-tuned to Washington and Moscow. It looks to the West for help but is locked in conflicts with Russia and its allies.

Wednesday’s summit between Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Geneva will have Ukraine watching from the sidelines with deep interest in everything from the phrases used to the body language between the two leaders.

Expectations are low that the talks will produce a breakthrough in U.S. relations with Russia. Still, even the slightest shifts in policies have potential consequences for Ukraine.

<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/ukraine-summit-biden-putin/2021/06/13/b6783866-c9f8-11eb-8708-64991f2acf28_story.html?itid=lk_inline_manual_148">Read the full story</a>

David L. Stern

Biden intended his tour through Europe to be <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2021/06/09/biden-west-europe-trip/?itid=lk_inline_manual_4&itid=lk_inline_manual_150">an exercise in contrast</a> with his right-wing predecessor.

Far from President Donald Trump’s <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trump-shadow-g7/2021/06/12/9b1166e4-c9ec-11eb-93fa-9053a95eb9f2_story.html?itid=lk_inline_manual_4&itid=lk_inline_manual_151">abrasive and divisive performances</a> at previous summits with U.S. allies, Biden played the convivial uncle at this weekend’s <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/queen-elizabeth-biden-g7/2021/06/13/078574de-c7cf-11eb-8708-64991f2acf28_story.html?itid=lk_inline_manual_4&itid=lk_inline_manual_151">meeting of leaders of the Group of Seven nations</a> and will strive to do the same at a NATO summit starting Monday.

His colleagues from across the pond <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/biden-and-macron-share-affection-and-world-view-at-g-7-summit-11623603914">seemed to embrace</a> the change in atmosphere, as the leaders made <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/501551f1-5624-469c-bcf3-c31544de0e1e">new commitments</a> to the global struggle against the pandemic and climate change.

<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2021/06/14/china-biden-europe/?itid=lk_inline_manual_153">Read the full story</a>

‘NATO stands together,’ Biden says in show of unity ahead of meeting with Putin

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President Joe Biden: What you need to know