DARMSTADT, Germany — During Valentine’s Day week, the White House is expected to announce the agenda for President Bush’s upcoming visit to Germany.
Until now, the United States hasn’t announced details of his trip to Germany on Feb. 23, which newspapers here have claimed could include stops to visit troops in Wiesbaden or at Ramstein Air Base.
A spokesperson at the National Security Council in Washington, D.C., said the new national security adviser, Stephen J. Hadley, would announce further details during the week of Feb. 14.
Germany has announced that the visit will include a meeting in Mainz. In a prepared statement, the German government listed as topics the fight against international terrorism, the plight of Afghanistan and Iraq, as well as the Asian tsunami disaster.
Army Maj. Mike Indovina, spokesman for the 1st Armored Division in Wiesbaden, said soldiers would be excited to see the president, but the only news he had were media reports.
The situation was much the same at the headquarters of U.S. Air Forces in Europe at Ramstein. Capt. Chris Watt, a spokesman there, said he had only read news reports that the air base was listed as an alternate site where Bush might address troops.
The White House first announced the trip Dec. 21. The release said Bush would meet with German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder after meeting with leaders of NATO and the European Union. He would later travel to the Slovak Republic and also meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
According to a transcript, White House spokesman Scott McClellan said the meetings would “underscore the president’s commitment to building on our shared values of freedom, democracy and human rights, and to work closely with European allies and friends on the 21st century challenges that we face together.”
