US President Joe Biden welcomes European leaders Charles Michel and Ursula von der Leyen in Washington Friday, at a summit set to deliver a message of unity on conflicts in Gaza and Ukraine.
The EU-US summit takes place against a backdrop of global crises, as fighting rages on in Ukraine while Israel declared war on Hamas after a surprise attack by the group this month.
American and European leaders will be keen to present a united front, seeking to strengthen their “strategic partnership.”
Drawing parallels between Russia’s war in Ukraine and Hamas’s assault on Israel, European Commission President Von der Leyen said in a speech on Thursday that “these two crises, however different, call on Europe and America to take a stand and to stand together,” in order to “shelter our democracies.”
In particular, both sides are looking to avoid a potential second front in the Israel-Hamas conflict that would see the involvement of the Hezbollah movement in Lebanon — or a regional escalation with unpredictable ramifications.
“It’s particularly important that we redouble our efforts on both sides of the Atlantic to ensure that this conflict does not spill outside of its borders,” said an EU official on condition of anonymity.
The summit will be an opportunity “to send clear unified messages to all parties in the conflict,” the official told reporters ahead of the gathering.
– Reassurance –
But a key issue at stake will be leaders’ ability to show strong, ongoing support for Ukraine.
Biden, who has just returned from a visit to Tel Aviv, addressed Americans on Thursday evening in a bid to unite them behind the defense of Israel and Ukraine — and secure the political consensus he needs to fund both causes.
Hamas militants stormed into Israel on October 7 and have killed at least 1,400 people, mostly civilians on the first day of the raid, according to Israeli officials.
More than 3,700 Palestinians, mainly civilians, have been killed across the Gaza Strip in Israeli bombardments in retaliation, said the Hamas health ministry in Gaza.
The stakes are high with Congress now paralyzed for more than two weeks as divided Republicans, who hold the majority in the House of Representatives, fail repeatedly to agree on electing a House speaker.
Congress also faces a November 17 deadline to act on the budget, so as to avoid a possible government shutdown.
At the summit, Biden is expected to reassure European leaders.
Speaking to the press on Thursday, Michel, who is European Council President, said he was “extremely confident” the US president would do all he could to secure Ukraine aid.
Also on the agenda is the involvement of third countries through which Russia is trying to circumvent sanctions.
“We are trying to close all the possible doors,” said Michel.
The last EU-US summit took place in Brussels, in June 2021.
– Trade dispute –
But geopolitics will not be the only issue at stake, with the world’s leading economies showing signs of weakness according to the International Monetary Fund.
And the EU and United States are due to settle trade disputes including on European steel imports — targets of tariffs imposed in 2018 under former President Donald Trump.
While they were suspended in 2021, they could be reactivated if no agreement is reached by end-October.
EU trade commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis sounded a cautiously optimistic note on Tuesday in Luxembourg.
“We see the global steel and aluminum arrangement and also critical minerals agreement as a deliverable for this summit,” he told reporters on the sidelines of a finance ministers meeting.
But he warned it was not a done deal, saying “some gaps” need to be bridged.
Apart from an accord on steel and aluminum, the EU is also hoping to finalize a critical minerals deal, to ensure European companies can benefit from provisions in the US’s Inflation Reduction Act.
In the face of the climate crisis, the EU also seeks to urge Washington to do more.
For their part, the 27 European nations agreed this week that the bloc would seek a global phase-out of fossil fuels, and for their use to reach a peak this decade at the COP28 UN climate talks later this year.
