President Biden will meet one-on-one with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan during his first international trip next week, the White House announced Thursday.
Biden will leave late next week for the first of three stops in Europe: The United Kingdom for a Group of Seven (G-7) gathering, Belgium for a NATO summit and Switzerland for a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“This trip will highlight America’s commitment to restoring our alliances, revitalizing the Transatlantic relationship, and working in close cooperation with our allies and multilateral partners to address global challenges and better secure America’s interests,” White House press secretary Jenn Psaki said in a statement.
On June 10, Biden will meet with Johnson in their first in-person meeting since Biden took office. The two will “affirm the enduring strength of the special relationship between the United States and the United Kingdom,” the White House said, though the pandemic and trade issues surrounding Brexit are likely to be discussed.
Biden will attend the G-7 summit in the U.K. and hold bilateral meetings with other leaders from the group. The White House did not specify which leaders, but German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau are among those who could be on Biden’s schedule.
On June 13, Biden and the first lady will meet with Queen Elizabeth II at Windsor Castle. On June 14, the president will head to Belgium for the NATO summit.
The White House said Biden would meet with Erdoğan while in Belgium “to discuss the full range of bilateral and regional issues.” Among the topics likely to come up is Biden’s recognition of the Armenian genocide more than 100 years ago by the Ottoman Empire.
Biden will cap his European trip on June 16 with a previously announced face-to-face meeting with Putin in Switzerland. The highly anticipated meeting comes amid an increasing number of cyberattacks against U.S. companies from Russia-based entities and as Moscow takes an aggressive posture toward Ukraine.