Survey: Major European allies optimistic about Biden administration

BERLIN — U.S. Presidentelect Joe Biden will assume office amid a surge in optimism among major European allies, and at home, about the future of trans-Atlantic relations and American foreign policy in general, a poll showed Tuesday.

Four years of President Donald Trump's “America First” approach to foreign policy, which included bashing traditional NATO friends and questioning the alliance itself while embracing authoritarian leaders, as well as new trade tariffs, have frayed relations with many in Europe.

But with the election of Biden, well-known to many in Europe already from his years as vice president and decades in the senate, wide major ities in Germany, France and Britain are looking favorably to the coming years, according to the Washington-based Pew Research Center's survey conducted late last year.

In both France and Germany 84% of respondents said they were optimistic about the future of their country's relationship with the U.S., as did 72% in Britain. In the U.S., 73% of respondents said they were optimistic about future relations with Europe.

When asked specifically about Biden, 79% of Germans, 72% of French and 65% of British respondents said they had confidence in him to do the right thing regarding world affairs. All three countries were consistently negative about Trump's performance on the international stage during his time in office, according to Pew Research Center's polling. Only about 1 in 10 Germans expressed confidence in his handling of world affairs in each of the four surveys conducted in the country during his presidency, for example.