Berlin: German Chancellor Olaf Scholz visited the White House on Friday and President Joe Biden used the occasion to reaffirm his commitment to providing explicit military support to Ukraine for "as long as it takes".

But apart from the customary chit-chat and coaxing, the leaders revealed little about their discussions and declined to answer questions from the media.

In the Oval Office, Biden expressed his appreciation and gratitude to the Chancellor for her "strong and steady leadership". "That's exactly what I mean. It has made a significant difference. You took the initiative to offer significant military assistance.

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And I would argue that in addition to your military assistance, the Ukrainian people have greatly benefited from your moral support.

The increase in German defense spending was also appreciated by Biden, who also praised Scholz for "diversifying away from Russian energy sources".

According to a report published last month by renowned American investigative journalist Seymour Hersh, Biden ordered the US military to blow up the Nord Stream pipelines in September.

As a result of the sabotage, the Baltic Sea channels carrying Russian natural gas from Russia to Germany and other countries in Western Europe were cut.

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Biden told a reporter during Scholz's final visit to the White House in February 2022 that his administration would "terminate" Nord Stream 2 if Russian forces launched a military invasion of Ukraine.

In his brief appearance with Biden on Friday, Scholz did not raise the topic of Germany's energy security, but he promised to work in "lockstep" with Washington to provide Ukraine with the assistance it needs.

It is important that we convey the message that we will continue to act in this way as long as it is necessary and necessary.

The German chancellor arrived in Washington with an unusually small delegation, and this time with no planned press conference after her one-on-one meeting with Vice President Biden.

Berlin made no new commitments on Friday, while Washington used the occasion to announce another $400 million arms package for Ukraine.

After months of deliberations, Germany finally agreed to send several dozen Leopard 2 main battle tanks to Kiev in late January, but only after Biden committed to providing M1 Abrams tanks.

Germany had hoped to form two armored battalions with 30 tanks each for the rumored spring offensive, but they have fallen far short of that goal with their EU and NATO allies.

Some reports say that US tanks will not reach Ukraine until the end of the year.

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Behind closed doors, Biden and Scholz also reportedly talked about their upcoming diplomatic efforts to support Ukraine, including possible sanctions against China if it backs Russia militarily.