VP Harris seeks to reassure wary allies at security conference
MUNICH — Speaking at the Munich Security Conference on Friday, Vice President Kamala Harris tried to allay concerns among European allies about American resolve in major conflicts, while also sending a message to voters at home: Electing Donald Trump in November would destabilize the global order and weaken the United States.
“I know there are questions here in Europe and around the world about the future of America’s role of global leadership,” she told the conference on Friday afternoon. “These are questions the American people must also ask ourselves.”
Ms. Harris’ speech — which marks her third appearance at the annual confab of world leaders and policy and security officials — precedes a busy weekend in which she will meet several European leaders, including German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Speaking just days after Mr. Trump set off new anxiety by saying he would encourage Russia to attack NATO allies that underspend on defense, Ms. Harris may find it difficult to reassure Washington’s transatlantic partners, who are keenly aware of the electoral uncertainty of this year’s presidential contest.
But Ms. Harris argued that a worldview that includes isolationism and support for authoritarian governments only weakens the United States and hurts its people.
“That worldview is dangerous, destabilizing and indeed shortsighted. That view would weaken America,” she said.
It is in many ways a global spin on Mr. Biden and Ms. Harris’ reelection message that Mr. Trump would undo the progress the administration has made on rebuilding trust in Washington.
There is much more to discuss at this weekend’s gathering in Munich: worrying reports of Russian advances from the front lines of eastern Ukraine; Israel’s plans for a potentially devastating ground assault on Rafah; and an unspecified “space threat” from Russia, for starters.
Through all of Friday’s drama, a large question has hung over this year’s Munich Security Conference: What, exactly, is happening in the United States?
For months, Europe’s political, security and intelligence establishment has watched nervously as critical Ukraine aid became mired in domestic politics. American interlocutors assured the Europeans that, ultimately, the bill would pass and money and military equipment would continue to flow.