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Biden, Macron to meet in Rome: White House

Doina Chiacu and Andrea ShalalReuters
US President Joe Biden (right) and French President Emmanuel Macron are set to meet in Rome.
Camera IconUS President Joe Biden (right) and French President Emmanuel Macron are set to meet in Rome. Credit: AP

US President Joe Biden and French President Emmanuel Macron have discussed security co-operation around the world as the two countries work to mend fences after a rift over a US security pact with the UK and Australia.

Biden and Macron plan to continue their discussions when they meet this month in Rome at a summit of leaders from the G20 major economies, the White House said.

Vice President Kamala Harris also will meet with Macron during a visit to Paris in November, the White House said, underscoring efforts to repair ties between the United States and France after Australia scrapped a French submarine contract in favour of a pact with the AUKUS allies.

The visits follow a trip by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to Paris earlier this month, where he said he had "very positive, very productive" conversations with French leaders.

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US Trade Representative Katherine Tai also met with her French counterpart Franck Riester on Friday on the sidelines of a G7 trade minister conference, where she stressed the US commitment to "strengthening the bilateral relationship with France," her office said in a statement.

In his call with Macron, Biden reviewed ongoing efforts by both countries to support stability and security in the Sahel region and to enhance co-operation in the Pacific as well as efforts to enable a stronger European defence, the White House said.

"President Biden looks forward to the meeting with President Macron in Rome later this month, where they will continue the conversation, take stock of the many areas of US-France co-operation and reinforce our shared interests and common values as we take on challenges and opportunities together," it said.

Harris will meet with Macron while in Paris to deliver a speech at the fourth annual Paris Peace Forum on November 11 and participate in the Paris Conference on Libya on November 12, her spokeswoman Symone Sanders said in a statement.

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