German Chancellor Yakin Kamala Harris Menangkan Pilpres AS

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz/PHOTO via Instagram @olafscholz

JAKARTA - German Chancellor Olaf Scholz praised United States Vice President Kamala Harris as a "competent and experienced" politician who could win the US Presidential Election.

Scholz was very straightforward in supporting Joe Biden from the US before Biden canceled his candidacy again last weekend and supported Harris as a candidate from the Democratic Party to face Trump in the November election.

Many German politicians fear Trump will impose a higher import rate if he returns to office.

They questioned US support for the NATO military alliance.

Germany has often been the focus of Trump's anger during his first term due to a trade surplus with the United States and low defense spending. But Berlin in recent years has increased its defense spending.

"The election campaign in America will certainly be interesting, now with a slightly new line-up and a new constellation," Scholz said at a summer annual press conference on Wednesday, July 24, reported by Reuters.

"I think it is very possible that Kamala Harris will win the election, but American voters will decide," said Scholz.

Scholz admitted that he had met Harris several times.

"This is a competent and experienced politician who knows exactly what he is doing," he said.

"He knows what he wants and what he can do," he added.

Scholz separately defended his government's economic policy and assured he would run again in federal elections next year despite poor opinion polling.

When asked if Scholz would be like Biden, perhaps considering canceling his candidacy to be re-elected, he answered jokingly.

"Thank you for the very good and friendly question," he said.

"SPD (Social Democratic Party, red) is a very united party. We are all determined to face the next general election campaign and win and I will run for rector to become chancellor again," he stressed.

Scholz, 66, has experienced a decline in his personal popularity, along with his coalition, since taking office at the end of 2021. Polls often place him behind conservative opposition leaders.

The Chancellor has fought a series of major crises, particularly Russia's invasion of Ukraine and resulted in the entry of more than one million refugees and the end of imports of cheap Russian gas that are the mainstay of the German economy.