The United States vice president met several European Union senior officials in Brussels on Monday in a diplomatic bid to soothe concerns over US President Donald Trump's apparently dismissive attitude towards the bloc.
During his visit to the EU's seat of power, Mike Pence met with European Council president Donald Tusk, European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker and EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini.
"Today it is my privilege on behalf of President Trump to express the strong commitment of the United States to continued cooperation and partnership with the European Union," said Pence during a joint press conference with Tusk.
He continued: "whatever our differences, our two continents share the same heritage, the same values and, above all, the same purpose; to promote peace and prosperity through freedom, democracy and the rule of law."
Pence reiterated his country's pledge to fight terror on a cooperative basis as well as its continued policy to hold Russia accountable for its actions in the Ukraine conflict_ a growing concern for some EU leaders who see Trump's approach to Moscow as soft.
Tusk said he had pressed Pence to clarify the US commitment to both the unity of the EU and the function of the trans-Atlantic Alliance.
Trump raised eyebrows in the international defense community when he described NATO as an "obsolete" organization and Tusk used the press conference on Monday to firmly reject this notion.
He went on to say the unity of the EU and the strength of NATO were cornerstones of the Western world and must, therefore, be protected.
Tusk said Pence had agreed with him on this point during their closed-door meeting but added that now "both Europeans and Americans must simply practice what they preach."
Several of the president's remarks have also sparked alarm among EU political officials, including his apparent support for Brexit and his recent suggestions that other EU member states may yet follow suit.
During his press conference with Pence, Juncker said: "I don't think that the moment has come to divide the US and the European Union."
The Luxembourgish politician said "global stability is heavily dependent on the good relations between the United States of America and the European Union. I think the US needs a strong, united EU on all possible issues."
In response, Pence said the US would continue to build on the cooperation and partnership it has with the EU.
Global stability, and more particularly the cooperative fight against international terror, was the principle theme of Pence's talks earlier with EU foreign policy representative Federica Mogherini.
In a statement following her meeting with the vice president, Mogherini said she "reaffirmed a strong willingness of the EU to continue building a strong EU-US partnership on the basis of clear values and interests."
They discussed at depth the mutual priorities such as the security threats posed by instability and conflict in Syria, Ukraine, Libya, and Afghanistan, among others.
Mogherini later took to Twitter where she described the encounter as an "Excellent meeting, good basis for our cooperation."
Mike Pence was due to meet the head of NATO while in Brussels, an organization to which he pledged the US' "unwavering support" during a speech over the weekend at the Munich Security Conference in Germany.
Source: EFE
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