BERLIN _ President Barack Obama sat down Thursday with his close friend Angela Merkel, the German chancellor, to try to make sense of the phenomenon vexing them both _ the election of Donald Trump to serve as leader of the free world.
At a news conference after their meeting, Obama expressed concern about whether Trump will stand up to Russian President Vladimir Putin as tensions escalate between the U.S. and Russia.
"I don't expect that President-elect Trump will follow exactly our blueprint, but my hope is that he does not simply take a realpolitik approach and suggest that if we just cut some deals with Russia ... (or) just do whatever's convenient," Obama said.
The U.S. blamed Russia for cyberattacks during the election, and Secretary of State John F. Kerry has also called for an investigation into Russia's bombardment of civilians in Syria, where it has provided military assistance to President Bashar Assad in the bloody civil war there. Moscow has said that the U.S. has failed to live up to its agreement to fight terrorism in Syria.
Merkel revealed her concern about what the new administration might mean for the victims of the Syrian civil war _ Trump has said he wants to keep Syrian refugees out of the U.S. _ and for shared values like the rule of law and respect for human rights.
The remarks by both the president and the leader of one of the U.S.' closest allies were remarkable for their public airing of concerns about the president-elect. Usually, diplomatic statements are full of cautious language _ and neither Obama nor Merkel openly disparaged Trump _ but their message was nonetheless unmistakable: Too much is at stake in geopolitics and the world order for Trump to drastically or suddenly alter U.S. foreign policy.
"He ran an unconventional campaign," Obama said, but his win means "that he now has to transition to governance."
As he told Trump personally, Obama said, "What may work in generating enthusiasm or passion during elections may be different from what will work in terms of unifying the country."
Merkel pursed her lips and studied the floor as Obama spoke.
