International press reacts to Trump-Harris debate as world watches ‘fiery debate’

It was not only Americans tuning into the U.S. presidential debate Tuesday night as 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 resounding consequences for U.S. policy abroad, and the international community has been paying close attention following President Biden’s drop from the race this July.

The reactions by the international press to the Tuesday night debate drew stark comparisons from Trump’s first debate, which largely focused on heightened concerns surrounding Biden’s cognitive abilities.

This time, though, Trump’s performance was in their crosshairs. 

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United Kingdom

The U.K. press, notoriously divided along party lines, reflected critical evaluations of how Trump performed under pressure from former prosecutor Harris, who was determined to have successfully achieved what so many of Trump’s opponents have been unable to – she flustered him.

Three of the right-leaning Telegraph’s leading stories on the debate suggested Harris came out on top, with one headline reading “Harris puts Trump on defensive in fiery showdown,” while another report described Trump’s performance as “furious” and “rambled.”

In analyzing the champion of the debate, the report concluded that Harris “made [Trump] look ridiculous.”

“It is difficult to crown Harris the victor of a political debate in which she said so little about her own platform. But her attack strategy won her the night. Trump fell for it: hook line and sinker,” the report added. 

The Times of London, generally considered a conservative-leaning newspaper, reported that Trump “struggled” through the debate, while another report criticized that he “leaned” into his base rather than going after moderate voters after they claimed he brought up a debunked claim that migrants in Springfield, Ohio, were “eating the pets” of residents.

A third report on the Times’ homepage read, “Strong night for Harris gets better with Taylor Swift endorsement.”

The Sun had more divided takeaways of the night with one report claiming Trump “ripped into Harris” while another highlighted a politics expert who called Trump’s debate talking points “Nonsense” and also highlighted his “meltdown over ‘migrants eating pets’.”

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France

The French press gave the win to Harris, with Le Monde, the nation’s top publication, leading with a headline that read “Harris, on offense, wins debate against Trump.”

L’Express, a Paris-based magazine described as center-right, also argued Trump was on the defensive Tuesday night in its report titled, “‘Kamala Harris has started to bang on Trump’ – the debate seen by the foreign press.”

Germany

The leading story on the publicly funded news outlet Deutsche Welle was headed by, “Harris puts Trump on defensive in fiery debate” and claimed pollsters showed Harris “narrowly won” over Trump. 

Though the report also noted the debate is unlikely to have an impact on U.S. voters – a sentiment broadly expressed in reporting across the U.S. as well.

Russia

Russian state-owned media TASS did not have any mention of the U.S. debate on its homepage.

While state-run news agency RIA Novosti lightly covered the debate, with one report headlined “Trump is doomed.”

A second report pointed to a response issued by the German Foreign Office following comments made by Trump during his closing remarks that criticized Berlin’s push toward clean energy.

The report included a response by the ministry posted to X, which said, “Like it or not: Germany’s energy system is fully operational, with more than 50% renewables. And we are shutting down – not building – coal & nuclear plants. Coal will be off the grid by 2038 at the latest. 

“PS: We also don’t eat cats and dogs,” the ministry added in an apparent jab at Trump’s previous debate comments. 

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Ukraine

In Ukraine – where the results of the 2024 election are expected to have a significant impact given Trump’s previous comments suggesting he will not continue to militarily support Kyiv – reports focused on the combative exchange between Trump and Harris. 

The Kyiv Independent honed in on Trump’s claims that he will have the war “settled” before even taking up the top job if elected this November – though he has refused to detail how he will accomplish this. 

The report did not name a winner or a loser, though it pointed out the two engaged in a bitter clash over the issue of Russia’s invasion and highlighted Trump’s refusal to say whether he wants Ukraine to come out on top.

Israel 

Israeli publications appeared to have more heavily covered the debate, though both candidates spent little time discussing the war between Israel and Hamas, and Harris was largely deemed the frontrunner.

One report by Israel Hayom, a right-leaning outlet, said Harris was “exuding confidence and control” and accused Trump of appearing “self-absorbed rather than voter-focused.”

The report said there was no clear “knockout” winner, but added the debate “was a genuine rhetorical slugfest in which Harris successfully exploited Trump’s weak spots and knocked him off balance.”

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The Jerusalem Post, also deemed to have conservative tendencies in its reporting, described the debate as “predictable” but noted Trump’s “apocalyptic prediction” that Israel would cease to exist under a Harris presidency was a “reach” and “oddly depriv[ed] the Jewish state of any agency or capacity to survive.”

Mexico

Mexico-based news outlet El Universal did not pronounce a clear winner as it did with the previous presidential debate when it named Trump debate champion over Biden.  

Though in a report detailing opinions by the publication’s top political commentators, Harris appeared to come out on top, with one opinion writer noting “Kamala Harris came well prepared and demolished former President Donald Trump for 90 minutes.”

Another argued the debate was the ultimate test for Harris following Biden’s “terrible” debate performance in July.

“Will it be enough to consolidate [her] lead in key states? We have to wait, but this debate was essential,” Andrew Seele told the publication. “Harris passed the test, and with flying colors.”

China

Chinese state-run media reported very little on the debate despite Trump-era tariffs being a top isused discussed during the night’s event. 

When Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Mao Ning was pressed by media outlets during the morning briefing Wednesday, she said she had “no comment.”

Though she did add that Beijing is “opposed to making China an issue in U.S. elections.”