Biden says hopes to meet Putin during June trip to Europe

Reuters

Updated: May 4, 2021 / 02:30 PM EDT

FILE – In this March 10, 2011, file photo, then-Vice President Joe Biden, left, shakes hands with Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin in Moscow, Russia. Russia and the United States exchanged documents Tuesday Jan. 26, 2021, to extend the New START nuclear treaty, their last remaining arms control pact, the Kremlin said. The Kremlin readout of a phone call between U.S. President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin said they voiced satisfaction with the move. (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko, File)

WASHINGTON (Reuters) — President Joe Biden said on Tuesday he would like to hold his proposed summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin during his June trip to Europe.

“That is my hope and expectation. We’re working on it,” Biden told reporters after a speech about the U.S. response to the coronavirus.

Biden plans to attend a Group of Seven summit in Cornwall, England, set for June 11-13, and then fly to Brussels to meet European Union leaders and attend a June 14 NATO summit.

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U.S. officials have been working with Russian counterparts on setting up a Biden-Putin summit in a third country during what will be Biden’s first overseas trip as president.

But whether an agreement will be reached remains to be seen.

Reporting by Nandita Bose and Steve Holland Editing by Mark Heinrich