German Chancellor Angela Merkel and US President Joe Biden agreed in a phone call, the first since the latter took office, on Monday that the COVID-19 pandemic and other global challenges can only be tackled through closer cooperation, a government spokesman in Berlin.

“The chancellor and the American president agree that stronger international efforts were needed to deal with the coronavirus pandemic,” said Merkel’s spokesman Steffen Seibert in a statement.

On that note, she welcomed Biden’s decision to reverse Trump’s decision last July to pull the United States out of the World Health Organization — even as the pandemic was raging.

A few months later in November, Biden’s predecessor Donald Trump also yanked the United States out of the Paris climate accord, claiming it “was designed to kill the American economy” rather than save the environment.

Also lauding Biden’s decision to return to the Paris agreement, Merkel pledged “Germany’s readiness to assume responsibility as it works with European and transatlantic partners in dealing with international tasks.”

Both leaders also spoke about foreign policy issues, particularly those relating to Afghanistan and Iran, and they discussed trade and climate policy, the spokesman said.

Earlier on Thursday, Merkel said during a press conference that there was far more common ground with Washington now that Biden has replaced Trump.

In what appeared to be a markedly warm call compared to her conversations with Trump, Chancellor Merkel also invited the US President to visit Germany “as soon as the pandemic situation allows,” her spokesman Steffen Seibert said.

Under Trump, the transatlantic relations had taken a serious hit. The former president attacked Germany repeatedly for its export strength and its relatively low defence spending within the NATO alliance.

The United States is Germany’s most important export market outside the bloc of European Union member states, but trade ties have deteriorated due to Trump’s “America First” trade policies, such as increasing import tariffs.

Merkel had launched a scathing attack on Trump after the storming of the US Capitol by his supporters, saying that the president shared blame for the unrest.

In 2016, she had greeted Trump’s election victory with an extraordinary warning: that she would work with him on the condition that he respects democratic values.