Friday 18 November 2016

Obama urges European leaders to work with US President-elect Trump

Outgoing US President Barack Obama and European leaders including Theresa May have stressed the continuedimportanceof Nato amid concerns about Donald Trump's commitment to the alliance.
The Prime Minister was in Berlin for talks with Mr Obama hosted by German Chancellor Angela Merkel, which also covered the fight against Islamic State (IS) and Russia's actions in the Ukraine and Syria.
The White House said Mr Obama urged the European leaders at the meeting - Mrs May, Mrs Merkel, French President Francois Hollande, Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi and Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy - to work with Mr Trump when he takes office in January.


There has been nervousness in Europe over Mr Trump's victory, particularly his criticism of Nato and his praise for Russian President Vladimir Putin.
A White House statement said: "The leaders agreed on the necessity of working collectively to move the transatlantic agenda forward, particularly on bringing stabilisation to the Middle East and North Africa, as well as securing diplomatic resolution to the conflicts in Syria and eastern Ukraine.
"The leaders also affirmed theimportance of continued co-operation through multilateral institutions, including Nato."
On his farewell visit to the continent, Mr Obama "urged his European counterparts to continue seeking solutions to common challenges with the incoming US administration on the basis of the core values that define the United States and Europe as open democracies", the White House said.
Reflecting on the crisis in Syria and the bombardment of rebel-held areas of Aleppo by Bashar Assad's forces, supported by Moscow, the leaders "expressed grave concern about the humanitarian situation".
They "agreed that increased attacks against the city by the Syrian regime and its supporters, including Russia and Iran, should be immediately halted, and called for humanitarian access to the city to be restored.
The leaders also agreed on the need for sanctions against Russian figures over the Ukraine intervention to remain in place until Moscow meets its commitments under the Minsk peace deal.
Mrs May had a brief "brush-by" conversation with Mr Obama before the main talks began at the Chancellery in the German capital.
British sources said their short discussion was about the ongoing relationship between the UK and Washington "rather than the US election result".
Although Brexit was not on the agenda, Mrs May was expected to discuss the situation with her European counterparts in the margins of the summit, including a one-to-one meeting with Mrs Merkel.
The meeting follows a fresh warning from Berlin about the difficulties Mrs May will face as she attempts to secure a Brexit deal.
Germany's finance minister, Wolfgang Schauble, said the UK faces paying into the European Union for more than a decade after it quits the bloc.
He added that there will be no special deal to curb freedom of movement if the UK wants to remain part of the common market.
Responding to Mr Schauble's remarks, a Downing Street spokesman said: "We have always set out that, as long as we remain members of the EU, we will fulfil the commitments and obligations to the EU. What happens once we have left the EU is a matter for the negotiation process."



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