World leaders mark America’s 250th birthday with tributes to freedom, democracy

Israel joined a wave of international tributes to the United States on Saturday as America marked 250 years since the signing of the Declaration of Independence, hailing the country’s place in the world and the close bond between the two allies.

“250 years of freedom. 250 years of leadership. 250 years of inspiring the world,” Israel’s Foreign Ministry wrote on X. “Happy Independence Day from your friends in Israel.”

The message came a day after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke by phone with US President Donald Trump, congratulating him on the anniversary and telling him that the United States “ensures the freedom of the world,” according to the Prime Minister’s Office. Netanyahu’s office said the two leaders also agreed to meet in the United States in the near future.

World leaders and former presidents also marked the occasion, with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulating Trump and the American people “on behalf of 1.4 billion Indians.” Modi said the two countries shared “more than a strategic partnership,” citing democracy, the rule of law and “the limitless potential” of their people, and voiced hope that the next 250 years would bring America “even greater prosperity, peace and progress.”

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky cast the anniversary in wartime terms, thanking the United States for its backing against Russia and saying America’s support had shown the power of its “spirit,” “resolve” and technology, from Javelin anti-tank missiles to Patriot air defense systems. “May the dreams of free people always triumph over the evil and hatred of those who seek to destroy freedom,” Zelensky wrote.

French President Emmanuel Macron marked the day more symbolically, posting a photograph of the Statue of Liberty without a caption. The image carried its own diplomatic message: the statue was a gift from France to the United States, dedicated in 1886, and has long stood as one of the best-known symbols of American liberty and French-American friendship.

Former US presidents Joe Biden and Barack Obama used the anniversary to point to the unfinished work of American democracy. Biden wrote that 250 years ago Americans signed “a piece of parchment” and made a promise “no nation had ever made,” adding: “Happy 250th birthday, America. Our story isn’t finished.” Obama said America remained “a constant work in progress,” with each generation called to take up the work left by the last.

Russian President Vladimir Putin also sent a message to Trump, invoking both the American Revolution and the countries’ shared history as wartime allies. The signing of the Declaration of Independence was not only the birth of the United States but “an important milestone in world history,” Putin said, adding that Russia had supported the North American colonists in their struggle against British rule. He said Moscow and Washington, as the world’s two largest nuclear powers, bore “special responsibility” for global security and stability.