Danish PM to meet US president at White House for first time
Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen will meet US President Joe Biden on June 5th in her first one-on-one meeting at the White House since taking power in 2019.
At the meeting, which will take place on Denmark's Constitution Day, the two will discuss Danish-American cooperation, continued support for Ukraine, expectations for the Nato summit in Vilnius in Lithuania in July, and working together on future threats, the green transition and the climate.
"It is always something special for a prime minister to represent Denmark at the White House. It is for me too, and I look forward to the visit," Frederiksen said in a statement announcing the visit. "The United States is our most important ally. The transatlantic bond is as strong as it has ever been."
The White House also issued a statement saying that the two leaders would "discuss our unwavering support for Ukraine in the face of Russia’s brutal war of aggression" and "review our efforts as Nato allies and close partners to strengthen transatlantic security".
Frederiksen's visit to the White House will take place almost a year after she first received an invitation from Biden at the Nato summit in Madrid last year.
Most Danish prime ministers are invited to the White House at least once: Lars Løkke Rasmussen, prime minister from 2015 to 2019, met with President Donald Trump in March 2017 and Helle Thorning-Schmidt, prime minister between 2011 and 2015, visited Barack Obama in February 2012.
Jesper Steinmetz, TV2's US correspondent, told the broadcaster that a visit scheduled last year had been cancelled because it clashed with the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II, while before that the visit had been delayed due to the coronavirus pandemic.
"It is a visit that has been an incredibly long time in the making," he said. "The Danish side has been working to get Mette Frederiksen to the White House for more than a year."
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At the meeting, which will take place on Denmark's Constitution Day, the two will discuss Danish-American cooperation, continued support for Ukraine, expectations for the Nato summit in Vilnius in Lithuania in July, and working together on future threats, the green transition and the climate.
"It is always something special for a prime minister to represent Denmark at the White House. It is for me too, and I look forward to the visit," Frederiksen said in a statement announcing the visit. "The United States is our most important ally. The transatlantic bond is as strong as it has ever been."
The White House also issued a statement saying that the two leaders would "discuss our unwavering support for Ukraine in the face of Russia’s brutal war of aggression" and "review our efforts as Nato allies and close partners to strengthen transatlantic security".
Frederiksen's visit to the White House will take place almost a year after she first received an invitation from Biden at the Nato summit in Madrid last year.
Most Danish prime ministers are invited to the White House at least once: Lars Løkke Rasmussen, prime minister from 2015 to 2019, met with President Donald Trump in March 2017 and Helle Thorning-Schmidt, prime minister between 2011 and 2015, visited Barack Obama in February 2012.
Jesper Steinmetz, TV2's US correspondent, told the broadcaster that a visit scheduled last year had been cancelled because it clashed with the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II, while before that the visit had been delayed due to the coronavirus pandemic.
"It is a visit that has been an incredibly long time in the making," he said. "The Danish side has been working to get Mette Frederiksen to the White House for more than a year."
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