Mr. Scholz appears committed to preserving Germany’s $150 billion a year exports to China at all costs. This was made clear recently to Lithuania, which is suffering a Chinese trade war for letting Taiwan open a representative office. German businesses, rather than supporting their democratic neighbor, are warning Lithuania to give in to China’s demands or see German investment suspended. That lack of democratic solidarity stems from the Federal Chancellery. This is a realm where Volkswagen exports talk and the Uyghur genocide, destruction of Hong Kong democracy and military imperialism walk.

Even when Germany pretends that it cares about the democratic international order, its lack of genuine interest quickly becomes obvious. Germany recently deployed a warship in the South China Sea, which China claims as its own private swimming pool. Simultaneously, however, Berlin begged Beijing to let its ship make a Shanghai port call. China denied the request. Contrast Germany’s South China Sea experience with that of France, which has sent nuclear attack submarines to train with U.S. Navy counterparts for battle with an advanced adversary.

Mr. Biden suggests that Germany is one of America’s most important allies. Given Berlin’s policies toward the nation’s two pre-eminent adversaries, it’s hard to see how Mr. Biden’s claim holds up.