Obama, Merkel to meet on Afghanistan, Iran, climate
Bloomberg - World News
Oct 29, 2009

German Chancellor Angela Merkel will meet with President Barack Obama next week for talks about the path ahead in Afghanistan, dealing with Iran and climate change, Obama’s spokesman, Robert Gibbs, said today.

Merkel will be in Washington on Nov. 3, the same day Obama takes part in a U.S.-European Union summit with Swedish Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt, European Commission President Jose Barroso and European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana. The agenda for that meeting includes the same topics.

Merkel’s U.S. visit was announced by Germany earlier this month. She also will address both chambers of the U.S. Congress to mark the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall.

Obama is seeking greater European help in the conflict in Afghanistan and confronting Iran over its nuclear program. The leaders also are preparing for a global summit on climate change in Copenhagen in December. Merkel said earlier today at an EU meeting in Brussels that she wants to press the U.S. and China to “make clear what they’re prepared to offer” at the climate conference.

Reinfeldt said he is seeking an agreement among EU members on funding for projects aimed at countering climate change.

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