Brussels, 02/03/2001 (Agence Europe) - As we had previously announced, the next EU/United States ministerial meeting (the first with the Bush administration) will take place on 6 March in Washington. The EU Troika lead by the Council President Anna Lindh, and including the High Representative for CFSP, Javier Solana and the Commissioner for External Relations Chris Patten, will mainly discuss, with the Secretary of State Colin Powell, policy issues and international current affairs - cooperation towards peace and stabilisation in the Western Balkans, the situation in the Middle East, relations with Russia (the EU Heads of State and Government will meet President Putin before the start of the European Council on 23 and 24 March in Stockholm), enlargement of the EU, security policy, non proliferation, the UN - and also the extraterritorial legislation of the United States (see EUROPE of 28 February, p.7 concerning meetings between Mr Powell and Mr Prodi and Mr Patten in Brussels).
Let us also recall that President Bush should take part, on 14 June in Gothenburg, in a dinner with the EU 15 Heads of State and Government, at the end of the first day of work at the European Council. The half yearly EU/United States Summit will take place in the morning of 14 June, the European Union will, as usual, take part at the Troika level.