The United States and European Union are due to hold discussions on trade and a wide range of issues
President Joe Biden is to host European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen at the White House to discuss trade and the turmoil in the Western Balkans, among other issues, as he attempts to repair ties with the European Union.
The meeting in Washington comes shortly after Biden and von der Leyen, the president of the EU’s executive, met during the G20 summit in Rome and the United Nations climate conference in Glasgow.
According to the White House, the two leaders will follow up on those meetings by discussing “rules of the road” for the economy through a joint US-EU trade and technology council, as well as global warming and regional issues such as Ukraine and the Western Balkans.
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Biden, a Democrat, has sought to strengthen ties with Europe after his Republican predecessor, Donald Trump, abandoned allies and institutions during his presidency.
“President Biden will reaffirm his support for the European Union as a critical partner for the United States,” said White House spokeswoman Emily Horne in a statement.
Under Biden, transatlantic relations have improved, with the US and the EU resolving two major trade disputes over aircraft subsidies and steel production in order to unite against larger threats posed by China.
Biden and von der Leyen may discuss a sharp increase in energy prices that has fueled inflation fears, deepening discussions that began during the G20.
Biden, who has pressed OPEC and its partners to increase oil supply, has urged major G20 energy-producing countries with spare capacity to increase output in order to ensure a stronger global economic recovery.
The White House has indicated that if OPEC and its partners do not do more to boost production, it will consider other options, but has not specified which ones.
According to the head of ethnic Hungarians’ party UDMR, Kelemen Hunor, the three would-be ruling partners in Romania, who began negotiations on forming a new government on November 9, plan to have the new Executive endorsed by lawmakers by November 18-19.
He stated that the three partners had reached an agreement on the procedure calendar. However, this appears to be a tight schedule, and the Liberals previously pointed to the end of the month as a more realistic deadline.
