VdL Meets w/UK PM, UN Sec-Gen, German Econ Min On Sidelines Of AI Summit

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen is holding a series of high-level bilateral meetings today on the sidelines of the ongoing AI Safety Summitat Bletchley Park in England. VdL is meeting with UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, as well as UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres and German Vice Chancellor and Economy Minister Robert Habeck. Livstream of meetings can be found here.

• Sunak states that he will discuss "tackling illegal migration" with VdL. Relations between the EU and UK retain a relatively positive outlook at present, with the issues regarding the Northern Ireland protocol seemingly ironed out (for now) by the now-implemented Windsor Framework.
• Talks between Guterres and VdL, while ostensibly focused on the AI summit, are likely to centre on the situation in the Middle East. VdL has been one of the most vocal supporters of Israel since the 7 Oct Hamas attacks, while Guterres has come in for criticism from the Israeli gov't for perceptions that he "justified acts of terror" by Hamas after saying they came "after years of suffocating occupation."
• With Habeck, talks could focus on the opening of "an anti-subsidy investigation into electric vehicles coming from China” announced in VdL's September State of the EU address. Habeck, alongside his French counterpart Bruno le Maire, had been a major advocatefor such a probe.