At the German foreign ministry, diplomats are scrambling to prepare for a scenario that many had long thought implausible: Donald Trump’s return to the White House, an event that could have incalculable consequences for Germany and its place in the world.
Officials from the ministry’s North America desk, its Policy Planning Staff, the office of the co-ordinator for transatlantic co-operation and Germany’s embassy in Washington have formed a kind of informal crisis group to discuss what a Trump victory in November’s US presidential election would mean for Germany — and how Berlin should react.
The latest development on the group’s agenda: President Biden’s decision on Sunday to abandon his bid for re-election, following weeks of pressure from senior Democrats, and endorse vice-president Kamala Harris to succeed him.