The US President is taking considerable risks with his trip. In Israel he supports the ally. In Jordan he tries to calm the Arabs.
An air alert like the one that sent Secretary of State Antony Blinken to the bunker on Monday night during a War Cabinet meeting at the Ministry of Defense in Tel Aviv does not particularly scare Joe Biden. Shortly after the US president arrived in Kiev on a 10-hour overnight train journey eight months ago, Vladimir Putin sent rocket greetings from Russia.
Unlike his solidarity visit to Israel, Biden’s lightning visit to Ukraine was not announced. The fact that the 80-year-old endured the hardships of traveling to the Ukrainian capital by night train earned him the respect of even his opponents. His trip to the Middle East also now has a secondary aspect: about a month before his 81st birthday, the president can convince those who doubt his physical condition. His predecessor probably would not have expected such a short trip across the Atlantic and back. Donald Trump avoided war zones.