President-elect Donald Trump has more than a month before he returns to the White House, but he has already taken a prominent role on the world stage — even as President Joe Biden is still commander in chief.
Trump’s imminent return to power was evident during his weekend trip to Paris, where he attended the reopening of Notre Dame Cathedral and met with various world leaders. The incoming president has also engaged with the leaders of Mexico and Canada over proposed tariffs, threatening new sanctions on their goods if his concerns about border security are not met. Since the Nov. 5 election, Biden has had a more muted presence on the world stage.
During his visit to France, Trump met with French President Emmanuel Macron, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, and William, Prince of Wales, among others.
The meeting with Zelensky came as Trump pushed for an end to the war in Ukraine, which Russia began in February 2022 with its invasion of the country. It’s unclear what the relationship between the United States and Ukraine will look like under Trump’s leadership after years of largely uninterrupted funding flowing from Congress to Kyiv under the Biden administration. The Ukrainian president called the meeting with Trump and Macron a “good and productive trilateral meeting.”
“President Trump is, as always, resolute. I thank him. I also extend my gratitude to Emmanuel for organizing this important meeting,” Zelensky said in a post on X about the meeting. “We all want this war to end as soon as possible and in a just way. We spoke about our people, the situation on the ground, and a just peace. We agreed to continue working together and keep in contact. Peace through strength is possible.”
While Trump made headlines at the reopening of Notre Dame, the Biden administration was present at the ceremony. First lady Jill Biden was in attendance for the reopening, where she was seen briefly talking to Trump.
Trump also issued a statement on the instability and regime change in Syria before Biden delivered his Sunday speech on the matter. The president-elect said the U.S. should “not get involved” in the conflict and later reiterated his push for Ukraine and Russia to end their war.
Biden stepping aside and letting Trump dominate the headlines is frustrating Democrats, who largely blame him for their electoral losses last month.
“This is one of the lamest of lame ducks we’ve seen with a Democratic administration,” Usamah Andrabi, spokesman for the progressive group Justice Democrats, told the Wall Street Journal. “A massive missed opportunity.”
Both of these actions come on the heels of Trump’s engagement with Canada and Mexico about border security and the flow of drugs into the U.S. through the southern and northern borders. Trump’s handling of the transition process has been more of an early return to power in some ways, as he is only the second former president to win another term after spending time out of the White House. However, there has been a majority approval over the postelection period.
A CBS News-YouGov poll released late last month showed that 59% of people approve of Trump’s handling of the presidential transition, compared to only 41% who said they disapprove of it. The figures are higher than Trump’s 49.9%-48.4% victory over Vice President Kamala Harris in the popular vote nationally, according to the latest figures from the Associated Press.
Biden, while not taking as prominent of a role on the world stage since the transition period began, has made two foreign trips to South America and Africa.
The president’s trip to Peru and Brazil last month, with meetings of the Asian-Pacific Economic Cooperation and the G20, saw him engage with several other world leaders. However, since that trip, meetings with prominent officials on the world stage have slowed.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
Last week, Biden was in Angola and met with African leaders during the whirlwind trip, but unlike the last two transition periods, in 2020 and 2016, he has let Trump take over the headlines.
Biden will hand the baton off to Trump at noon on Jan. 20, at the Inauguration in Washington, D.C., which the president has said he will attend.
This article was originally published at www.washingtonexaminer.com
