Enlarge image Chancellor Merkel and President Obama prepare to review the troops during the arrival ceremony. (© picture-alliance / dpa) Germany is one of the United States’ strongest allies, President Barack Obama said Tuesday during Chancellor Angela Merkel’s official visit to Washington, DC. “This is the essence of our alliance—two peoples, bound by common values and committed to the security, the prosperity, and the dignity not just of our own citizens, but those far beyond our borders,” Obama said after his talks with Chancellor Merkel in the morning.

“Europe and Germany have no better partner than America,” Chancellor Merkel said. Both countries have the common duty to again shape today’s world in the spirit of freedom and of common values.

Chancellor Merkel and President Obama met together bilaterally in the Oval Office Tuesday morning and held talks together with cabinet members of both governments. Merkel was accompanied on the trip by Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle, Defense Minister Thomas de Maizière, Finance Minister Wolfgang Schäuble, Interior Minister Hans-Peter Friedrich and Economics Minister and Vice Chancellor Philipp Rösler. German ministers also met bilaterally with their US counterparts, coordinating common positions on a range of issues on the global agenda, from economic recovery to Afghanistan.

The meetings followed a very colorful arrival ceremony for Chancellor Merkel on the South Lawn of the White House, complete with military honors and thousands of enthusiastic spectators. The visit, including also a State Dinner, was the first official visit by a European leader during Obama’s presidency.

Enlarge image German Chancellor Angela Merkel and US President Barack Obama converse in the Oval Office inside the White House in Washington, D.C., USA, 7 June 2011. Merkel is on a two-day-visit to the United States. Photo: Rainer Jensen (© picture alliance / dpa) “The transatlantic alliance is the cornerstone—is the heart—of our efforts to promote peace and prosperity around the world,” President Obama said during the ceremony. “And Germany—at the heart of Europe—is one of our strongest allies. And Chancellor Merkel is one of my closest global partners.”

Germany and the United States, as two of the world’s largest economies, can show that properity is best achieved when nations invest in their people and their ability to compete and innovate, Obama said. He called the two countries’ commitment to their common defense a “pillar of global security” and said that the German-American alliance shows that wars can end, adversaries can become allies and nations can be whole and free.

“It is obvious that neither of us looks exactly like the leaders who preceded us,” Obama said, drawing laughter and applause from the crowd. “But the fact that we can stand here today as President of the United States and as Chancellor of a united Germany is a testament to the progress, the freedom, that is possible in our world.”

For her part, Chancellor Merkel called the reception she received at the White House very moving and even overwhelming. Recalling her address to both houses of Congress two years ago, she said the official visit would be another such unforgettable moment.

“Receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom from you tonight is something that I consider to be not only an exceptionally gracious gesture of appreciation, and I see this as a gesture of appreciation for the whole of this united Germany.  It is also a testimony of the very, very close ties that bind our two countries together.”

America has always been a true friend to Germany, Merkel said, and that friendship has grown and matured throughout the decades. Germans shall never forget how America consistently stood on the side of freedom when Germany and Europe were divided and stood by Germany as the country made its way toward freedom and unity, Merkel said to applause.

Enlarge image President Barack Obama and German Chancellor Angela Merkel hold a joint press conference at the White House. (© picture alliance / landov) Close partnership with the United States is as much a pillar of German foreign policy as is European integration.

She concluded her remarks with these words in English: “Mr. President, dear Barack, in Berlin in 2008, you spoke to more than 200,000 people.  And in your address, you said America has no better partner than Europe.  And now it’s my turn to say Europe and Germany have no better partner than America.  Thank you.”

Wide-ranging bilateral talks

Topics for this tenth meeting between Merkel and Obama included the situations in Afghanistan, the Middle East, Libya and Iran and the stability of the euro.

Chancellor Merkel thanked the US President for the close cooperation in northern Afghanistan. “We share the opinion that in Afghanistan we wish to approach matters in the sense of a networked security approach,” a political and a military approach, Merkel said. One went into Afghanistan together and one wants to leave Afghanistan responsibly together without forgetting it.

The changes in North Africa are a huge challenge. The changes in the region are changes happening on Europe’s doorstep, she explained. In light of the flow of refugees, Germany has an enormous self-interest in contributing to getting the region on its feet.

Stability of the euro zone influences world economy

Trade relations and the situation of the euro were also a large part of the discussions. The economic crisis demonstrated clearly how interdependent Europe and America are, Merkel said.

“The stability of the euro zone is therefore an important factor of stability for the whole of the global economy,” she said. Germany, therefore, has a great interest in helping every country so that the euro is not endangered.

First official visit in 16 years

Chancellor Merkel’s visit is the first official visit to the United States by a German head of government since Helmut Kohl was received at the White House in 1995. Chancellor Merkel has now traveled to the US six times during Obama’s presidency. Most recently she was in Washington in April 2010.