For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
April 30, 2007

2007 U.S.-EU Summit

White House News

      President Bush Meets with EU Leaders, Hosts 2007 U.S.-EU Summit
      2007 U.S.-EU Summit

We, the leaders of the United States of America and the European Union, met today in Washington to deepen our strategic partnership. This partnership is based on common values, in particular on the deeply shared conviction that peace, prosperity and human development depend upon the protection of individual liberty, human rights, the rule of law, economic freedom, energy security, environmental protection and the growth of strong, democratic societies.

Our partnership has achieved much over the years, and today we have reviewed our work over the past year. Yet we continue to face major challenges, at home and abroad. Consistent with our commitment to work together to advance our shared values and interests, we have today:

• Adopted a framework on transatlantic economic integration which lays a long-term foundation for building a stronger and more integrated transatlantic economy, in particular by fostering cooperation to reduce regulatory burdens and accelerating work on key "lighthouse projects" in the areas of intellectual property rights, secure trade, investment, financial markets, and innovation. We also reaffirm our strong desire to reach a prompt agreement in the WTO Doha Development Agenda (DDA) negotiations that is ambitious, balanced and comprehensive and creates meaningful new trade flows in agriculture, industrial goods and services among and between developed and developing countries;
• Adopted a declaration on political and security issues, including commitments to concrete actions to strengthen liberty, prosperity, security, peace and human rights and address regional challenges, in particular regarding Kosovo, Afghanistan, the Middle East, Iraq, Sudan, Latin America, and efforts to combat terrorism and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, and to work towards visa-free travel for all EU and U.S. citizens by creating conditions by which the Visa Waiver Program may be expanded;
• Adopted a joint statement on energy security and climate change that underlines our mutual interest in ensuring secure, affordable, and clean supplies of energy and tackling climate change. We will broaden and reinforce our activities to improve energy security and reduce pollution and greenhouse gas emissions, while supporting economic growth;
• Welcomed the signing of a first stage Air Transport Agreement which is an historic advance in liberalizing transatlantic air traffic. This agreement will bring real benefits for consumers and airline companies on both sides of the Atlantic. We reaffirm our commitment to pursue, as a matter of priority and no later than 60 days after March 30, 2008, negotiations to conclude a second stage agreement in order to achieve further liberalization.

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