BERLIN (Reuters) – German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Wednesday said he was not impressed by former U.S. President Donald Trump’s bid to regain the presidency in 2024, adding that it was not a topic on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Indonesia.
Scholz said Trump’s announcement was not impressive because it took place after the midterm elections in the United States, “where one can now also hope that, like in the last elections, a decision against populism will remain possible.”
Incumbent President Joe Biden is “a very smart, very experienced politician” and “an important trans-Atlanticist” who values good cooperation between Europe and the United States, Scholz said in an interview with broadcaster NTV.
Trump said he would make a third bid for the U.S. presidency, in an announcement that was carried live on Fox News on Tuesday.
Asked by Welt TV earlier on Wednesday whether Trump’s re-election bid was commented on at the G20 Bali summit, Scholz, who was the vice Chancellor during Trump’s tenure, replied: “The best news is, not at all.”
Transatlantic relations cooled sharply under Trump, who attacked Germany repeatedly for its export strength and its relatively low defence spending within the NATO alliance.
After Biden’s election victory last year Scholz said Trump should leave office before Inauguration Day and that he was responsible for the Capitol Hill riots by Trump supporters that injured more than 140 police officers and led to several deaths.
(Reporting by Alexander Ratz and Kirsti Knolle, Editing by William Maclean; Writing by Riham Alkousaa; Editing by Miranda Murray, William Maclean)
