US Vice President Vance, EU chief talk tariffs in Rome

AFP | Rome

US Vice President JD Vance said yesterday that Europe was “an important ally” despite disagreements over trade as he met European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in Rome.

Vance expressed hope that the talks -- the first at such a high level since US President Donald Trump introduced his sweeping tariffs earlier this year -- “will be the beginning of some long-term trade negotiations”.

They met alongside Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni at her office in Rome, after all three attended the inauguration mass at the Vatican for Pope Leo XIV.

In televised comments at the start of the meeting, Vance said: “I’ve said repeatedly that I think Europe is an important ally of the United States, the individual countries within Europe are important allies of the United States.

“But of course we have some disagreements, as friends sometimes do, on issues like trade, and we also have many agreements and many things that we can work on together, and I’m looking forward to this conversation.”

He added: “I think we’ll have a great conversation and hopefully (it) will be the beginning of some long-term trade negotiations and some long-term trade advantages between both Europe and the United States.”

For her part, von der Leyen -- who sat on one side of Meloni, with Vance on the other -- hailed the “very special and close relationship” between the US and the European Union.