Spain Prime Minister Sanchez To Visit White House On May 12

White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre has told reporters that Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez will travel to Washington D.C. on May 12 for a meeting with President Biden.

• Jean-Pierre: "The two leaders will review our efforts as NATO allies and close partners to strengthen our bilateral defence relationship, transatlantic security, and economic prosperity.
• "They will discuss our unwavering support for Ukraine and our efforts to impose costs on the Kremlin... The leaders will also coordinate on a range of issues as Spain prepares to assume the presidency of the European Union."
• Last month, Sanchez became the first European leader to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping following his Moscow summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
• Sanchez's China visit, and a subsequent visit from French President Emmanuel Macron, was widely seen as undermining a US-led effort to restrain China's economic and military development.
• Foreign Policy: "In a speech at the Boao Forum, China’s version of Davos, the Spanish prime minister praised China for its belief in “a strong, transparent, and rules-based multilateral system,” directly contradicting what [European Commission President Ursula] von der Leyen had said about Beijing’s vision for international order."