WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. President Joe Biden and Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi will meet in Washington next month to discuss Russia’s invasion of Ukraine among other issues, their offices said on Wednesday.
Biden will host his Italian counterpart at the White House on May 10 ahead of the G7 and NATO summits in June, the White House said in a statement.
“The focus of the meeting will be on coordination with the Allies on measures to support the Ukrainian people and counter Russia’s unjustified aggression,” Draghi’s office said in its statement.
Draghi and other Western leaders have been coordinating the response to Russia after it invaded its neighbor Feb. 24 and have vowed to continue to isolate and pressure Moscow over its aggression.
The two leaders will also discuss regional and global security issues, economic issues, Europe’s energy security and climate change, the White House added.
Draghi, who had to cancel a recent trip to Africa after testing positive for COVID-19, on Wednesday tested negative for the novel coronavirus, paving the way for him to resume travel.
(Reporting by Susan Heavey in Washington and Giulia Segreti in Rome; Editing by Doina Chiacu and Frank Jack Daniel)
