EU Leaders Meet on Sanctions, Tariffs  06/26 06:11

   The heads of the European Union's 27 member nations will meet Thursday in 
Brussels to discuss tougher sanctions on Russia, ways to prevent painful new 
U.S. tariffs, and how to make their voices heard in the Middle East conflicts.

   BRUSSELS (AP) -- The heads of the European Union's 27 member nations will 
meet Thursday in Brussels to discuss tougher sanctions on Russia, ways to 
prevent painful new U.S. tariffs, and how to make their voices heard in the 
Middle East conflicts.

   Most of the leaders will arrive from a brief but intense NATO summit where 
they pledged a big boost in defense spending, and papered over some of their 
differences with U.S. President Donald Trump.

   Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will join the EU summit by 
videoconference, after meeting Trump on Wednesday. U.S.-led NATO downgraded 
Ukraine from a top priority to a side player this week, but Russia's war in 
Ukraine remains of paramount concern for the EU.

   Members will be discussing an 18th round of sanctions against Russia and 
whether to maintain a price cap on Russian oil, measures that some nations 
oppose because it could raise energy prices.

   Meanwhile, Trump's threatened tariffs are weighing on the EU, which 
negotiates trade deals on behalf of all 27 member countries. He lashed out at 
Spain on Wednesday for not spending more on defense and suggested yet more 
tariffs. France's president called Trump to task for starting a trade war with 
longtime allies.

   European leaders are also concerned about fallout from the wars in the 
Middle East, and the EU is pushing to revive diplomatic negotiations with Iran 
over its nuclear program.

   EU members have internal disagreements to overcome. They are divided over 
what to do about European policy toward Israel because of its conduct in Gaza. 
And left-leaning parties are attacking European Commissioner Ursula von Der 
Leyen's pivot away from the EU's climate leadership in favor of military 
investment.

   Defense and security are likely to top the agenda. The summit will end with 
a statement of conclusions that will set the agenda for the bloc for the next 
four months and can be seen as a bellwether for political sentiment in Europe 
on major regional and global issues.