NATO summit puts Biden’s fitness under a microscope
WASHINGTON—The White House once hoped the NATO summit that opens Tuesday would showcase President Biden’s leadership of the trans-Atlantic alliance and his differences with Donald Trump. Instead it has become a pivotal test of his fitness for a second term. A solid performance during the three-day gathering of North Atlantic Treaty Organization leaders could help shore up his candidacy, reminding voters of his support for the 75-year-old military partnership that his predecessor regularly attacked.
Another stumble like his debate against Trump last month could only intensify calls for the 81-year-old commander in chief to exit from the presidential race. “He has absolutely no room for any sort of mistakes, any sort of trip-ups," said Rachel Rizzo, a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council. “The sort of gaffes that have become pretty common for Biden and just a factor of who he is as a person and as a president are now going to be seen by European leaders as a broader question of suitability." Biden will open the summit with remarks Tuesday, followed by a day of meetings and a dinner at the White House for NATO leaders on Wednesday and a press conference with reporters on Thursday.
He’ll also hold bilateral meetings with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and new British Prime Minister Keir Starmer. U.S. Ambassador to NATO Julianne Smith said Monday that she was confident of the president’s abilities, having briefed the president three weeks ago about the summit.
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