VS-EU top in Washington om transatlantische partnerschap te versterken (en)

Brussels, 25 November 2011 - The EU-US Summit will take place in Washington DC on Monday 28 November. The EU will be represented by President of the European Council Herman Van Rompuy i and President of the European Commission José Manuel Barroso i. High Representative Catherine Ashton i and EU Trade Commissioner Karel De Gucht i will also attend the summit. The United States will be represented by President Barack Obama i, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton i and other representatives of the US administration.

Before his departure to the United States, President of the European Council Herman Van Rompuy said: "I look forward to discussing the state of the global economy, including the European sovereign debt crisis, with President Obama. We, the EU and the United States, have the strongest trade and economic relationship in the world and remain partners of first resort. We will both need to take action to address the near-term growth concerns as well as fiscal and financial vulnerabilities. Together, we will also look for ways to use our very strong economic ties for creating growth and jobs on both sides of the Atlantic.

In addition to our discussions on the economy we will also take time to touch upon some of the current international issues where the EU and US cooperation has been intense since the last summit. We will in this regard discuss the Middle East, North Africa and the EU's eastern neighbourhood".

European Commission President José Manuel Barroso said: "With the world economy going through times of uncertainty and major changes occurring in the international system, the transatlantic relation is more relevant than ever. I look forward to discuss with President Obama how to face today's challenges in a concerted manner. We are each other's strategic partners and staunch allies. We need to work together to ensure long-lasting, and balanced growth worldwide. We need also to develop a Transatlantic agenda to growth and jobs. Deepening the transatlantic economic relationship - the most relevant and integrated in the world - is part of the answer to create more and better jobs.

But today’s globalised world is not just about economy but also about values and standards. In this sense we will also be discussing how to increase our international cooperation and build a stronger and fairer rules based system"

The main focus of the summit will be the global economic situation. Leaders are expected to discuss the EU and US responses to the crisis and how to support growth and job creation. They will also debate on global challenges such as climate change and energy and development cooperation. A range of foreign policy issues, including the Arab Spring, Iran, Syria, the Middle East Peace Process and Afghanistan, as well as the EU’s Eastern neighbourhood will also be addressed.

An EU-US Energy Council will take place on the same day whereas the Transatlantic Economic Council and the EU-US Development Dialogue are scheduled for Tuesday 29 November.