Americans weren't the only ones tuning in to Tuesday night's US presidential debate, where former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris faced off for the first time.
The results of the November election are expected to have a significant impact on U.S. foreign policy, and the international community is also paying close attention to the outcome following President Biden's withdrawal from the election campaign in July this year.
International press reaction to Tuesday night's debate drew striking comparisons to Trump's first debate, which focused largely on growing concerns over Biden's cognitive abilities.
But this time, they targeted Trump's performance.
Kamala Harris garners huge support in Donald Trump debate, Fox News invites her to second debate
Republican presidential candidate and former President Donald Trump debated Democratic presidential candidate and Vice President Kamala Harris for the first time during a presidential campaign event at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia, September 10, 2024. (Win McNamee)
England
British media, notoriously divided along partisan lines, have published critical assessments of how Trump responded under pressure from Harris, a former prosecutor who was determined to achieve something that many of Trump's opponents have failed to do: She unsettled Trump.
Three of the right-leaning Telegraph's main stories about the debate reported that Harris had won, with one headline saying “Harris puts Trump on the defensive in fiery showdown” and another describing Trump's performance as “infuriating” and “incoherent.”
Analyzing the debate champions: The report concludes: Harris said: [Trump] It seems ridiculous.”
“Harris was hard to pin down as the winner of the debate because she spoke so little about her policies, but her attack strategy carried her to victory – and Trump fell for it,” the report added.
The Times of London, generally considered a conservative newspaper, said Trump “struggled” in the debate, while another reported that he “leaned into” his base rather than attacking moderate voters after they criticized him for falsely claiming that immigrants in Springfield, Ohio, were “eating” residents' pets.
A third article on the Times homepage read, “Harris' strong night made even better by endorsement from Taylor Swift.”
The Sun was more divided in its reporting that night, with one report saying Trump “lashed out at Harris.” The other emphasized political experts. He called Trump's debate claims “nonsense” and also took aim at Trump's “outrage” about immigrants eating pets.
Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump attend the second presidential debate at the National Constitution Center, Tuesday, Sept. 10, 2024, in Philadelphia. (Getty Images)
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France
The French press gave Harris the victory. Le MondeThe nation's leading newspaper, “The New York Times,'' ran the headline, “Harris wins debate with Trump with attack.''
The center-right Paris-based magazine L'Express also claimed Trump was on the defensive in an article on Tuesday night titled “Kamala Harris begins attacking Trump – debate viewed by foreign media.”
Germany
The lead story in the publicly funded news outlet Deutsche Welle was headlined “Fierce debate puts Harris on the defensive”, and claimed that opinion polls had shown Harris had a “narrow victory” over Trump.
But the report also said the debate was unlikely to influence American voters – a view widely expressed in the national press.
Russia
Russian state media outlet TASS made no mention of the discussions with the United States on its website.
Meanwhile, the state-run news agency RIA Novosti gave the debate light coverage, with one article headlined “Trump is Hopeless.”
The second report pointed to a response from the German Foreign Ministry to comments made by President Trump in his closing remarks criticizing Germany's promotion of clean energy.
of The report contained the answers “Whether we like it or not, Germany's energy system is fully powered by more than 50 percent renewables. And we are closing coal-fired and nuclear plants instead of building them. Coal will be off the grid by 2038 at the latest,” the ministry posted in a message to X.
“PS: We also don't eat cats or dogs,” the department added, apparently mocking comments made by President Trump at the last debate.
Former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris. (Screenshot: Fox News simulcast of the ABC News presidential debate)
A majority of debate viewers say Harris won, according to a CNN poll
Ukraine
In Ukraine, reports have focused on the combative exchanges between Trump and Harris, with the outcome of the 2024 election expected to have a major impact given Trump's previous comments that he would not continue providing military aid to Kiev.
Kyiv Independent The focus was on Trump's claims He has said that if elected president in November he would try to “resolve” the war before taking up his post as prime minister, but has not provided details on how he would resolve it.
The report did not name winners or losers but noted the sharp confrontation between the two sides over Russian aggression and highlighted Trump's refusal to say whether he wanted Ukraine to win.
Israel
Israeli publications appeared to cover the debate in more detail, but neither candidate spent much time discussing Israel's war with Hamas, with Harris widely considered the front-runner.
One Reported by Israel HayomRight-wing media outlet The Daily Star said Harris “exudes confidence and control” and accused Trump of appearing “self-centered rather than voter-centered”.
The report said there was no clear “knockout” winner, but added that the debate was “a veritable rhetorical fistfight in which Ms. Harris successfully exploited Mr. Trump's weaknesses and kept him off balance.”
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The Jerusalem Post, which is considered to have a conservative bias in its reporting, called the debate “predictable,” but said Trump's “apocalyptic prediction” that Israel would disappear under a Harris presidency was “an overreach” and “strangely unfair.”[ed] The Jewish state has lost any authority or ability to continue to exist.”
