World leaders send their congratulations to President Biden

(Image credit: Jack Taylor/Getty Images)

last updated 21 January 2021

Several world leaders on Wednesday sent their congratulations to President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, with some also getting in a final jab at former President Donald Trump.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said Biden represented "victory of democracy over the ultra-right. Five years ago, we thought Trump was a bad joke, but five years later we realized he jeopardized nothing less than the world's most powerful democracy."

His comments were echoed by German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, who said he was "greatly relieved" by Biden's win. Referring to the pro-Trump mob that stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, Steinmeier added: "Despite all the joy we feel today, we must not forget that even the most powerful democracy in the world has been seduced by populism. We must work resolutely to counter polarization, protect and strengthen the public square in our democracies, and shape our policies on the basis of reason and facts."

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Explore More

Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.

Subscribe to The Week

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox