Biden to make first overseas trip as president to attend G7 summit in England in June

WASHINGTON – President Joe Biden will make the first overseas trip of his presidency when he attends the Group of Seven summit in England in June.

The White House confirmed Friday that Biden will attend the annual gathering of leaders of the world's most industrialized economies when the group meets in Cornwall, England, on June 11-13.

Afterward, he will travel to Brussels, where he will hold meetings with leaders of the European Union and attend the June 14 summit of leaders of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.

The White House said the trip will highlight Biden’s commitment to restoring U.S. alliances, revitalizing the transatlantic relationship, and working in close cooperation with U.S. allies and multilateral partners to address global challenges and better secure America’s interests.

While in England, he also will hold meetings with fellow G7 leaders, including British Prime Minister Boris Johnson.

In Belgium, Biden will affirm the U.S. commitment to NATO, transatlantic security and collective defense, the White House said. NATO leaders will discuss how to orient the alliance to future threats and ensure effective burden sharing. Biden will also hold meetings with fellow NATO leaders.

The leaders also will discuss a common agenda to ensure global health security, stimulate global economic recovery, tackle climate change, enhance digital and trade cooperation, strengthen democracy, and address mutual foreign policy concerns, the White House said.

Biden has made several domestic trips since taking office on Jan. 20. On Thursday, he will travel to Atlanta, where he and first lady Jill Biden will attend a drive-in car rally to celebrate his first 100 days in office.

Though Biden has yet to travel abroad, he has held virtual bilateral meetings with the leaders of Canada and Mexico. Last Friday, Biden held his first in-person bilateral meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga at the White House. This week, he is hosting a two-day virtual climate summit with 40 world leaders.

In June, Biden is expected to hold a bilateral meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan during the NATO summit in Brussels.

Biden and Erdogan spoke by phone on Friday amid reports the U.S. is preparing to formally acknowledge that the systematic killing and deportation of hundreds of thousands of Armenians by the Ottoman Empire in modern-day Turkey more than a century ago was genocide.

Lawmakers and Armenian-American activists are lobbying Biden to make the announcement on or before Armenian Genocide Remembrance Day, which will be marked Saturday.

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Biden had pledged to recognize Armenian genocide during his presidential campaign, but the move could complicate an already tense relationship with the Turkish leader.

The White House did not say whether the two leaders discussed the possible announcement during Friday's phone call. A White House statement about the conversation said only that they talked about "areas of cooperation and effective management of disagreements" and that they would hold bilateral talks in June.

Michael Collins covers the White House. Follow him on Twitter @mcollinsNEWS.

Contributing: The Associated Press.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Joe Biden: President to attend G7 summit in England in June