International Response to the Inauguration
By: Allyssa Lessinger
On Wednesday, January 20th, the 46th President of the United States Joe Biden was sworn into office. This was met by supportive statements from leaders from around the world, especially from those hoping to repair or improve their country’s relationship with the United States of America. The varying responses included congratulating the new president, announcing their excitement to work with President Biden, and asking him to overturn his predecessor’s policies.
The president of the European Commission, the executive branch of the European Union, Ursula von der Leyen spoke on the day of President Biden’s inauguration, saying, “Once again, after four long years, Europe has a friend in the White House.” She later tweeted out, “The United States is back. And Europe stands ready. To reconnect with an old and trusted partner, to breathe new life into our cherished alliance." France’s president, Emmanuel Macron, tweeted this out to welcome the United States back into the Paris Agreement: “We are together. We will be stronger to face the challenges of our time. Stronger to build our future. Stronger to protect our planet. Welcome back to the Paris Agreement.” The Russian Foreign Ministry put out a statement declaring Russia ready to work with the USA, in which they announced, “For our part, we are ready for such work on the principles of equality and mutual consideration of interests.” However, Iran’s president Hassan Rouhani took a different approach, remarking witheringly on the former president by calling him a “tyrant” and describing him as “someone for whom all of his four years bore no fruit other than injustice and corruption and causing problems for his own people and the world,” while Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif proclaimed on Twitter that “Trump, Pompeo & Co. are relegated to the dustbin of history in disgrace.” The United Kingdom’s Prime Minister Boris Johnson stated that he was ready for the two nations to “work hand in hand,” while Scotland’s First Minister, Nicola Sturgeon, was more forthright, adding, “I'm sure many of us across the chamber and across Scotland will be very happy to say cheerio to Donald Trump today.” In Germany, President Frank-Walter Steinmeier said that President Biden’s inauguration was a “good day for democracy,” while Canada’s prime minister, Justin Trudeau, congratulated President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris and said that he was “looking forward to continuing this partnership.”
There was one thing all of the officials who commented on the inauguration had in common, all of the world leaders seemed ready for this new chapter in American history, and people from all over the globe are ready for a transition towards more peaceful relations between the USA and the rest of the international community. The world is apprehensive but excited to see where President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris lead the United States of America.