Biden, EU leaders vow to restore relations after Trump tension

President Biden and European Union leaders pledged Tuesday to rebuild their relationship, which was fractured over the past four years under former President Trump.

“America is back. We are committed — we have never fully left — but we are reasserting the fact that it is overwhelmingly in the interest of the United States to have a great relationship with NATO in the EU,” Mr. Biden said ahead of the U.S.-EU summit in Brussels.

“I have a very different view than my predecessor,” he added.

Mr. Biden’s message of unity was welcomed by European Council President Charles Michel and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.

“You are back in Brussels, and America is back on the global scene,” Mr. Michel said. “It’s great news.”

“The last four years have not been easy,” Ms. Von der Leyen said. “The world has dramatically changed, Europe has changed, we want to reassure you, your friends and allies.”

Under Mr. Trump, relations between the EU and U.S. had become strained.

Many European leaders bristled when Mr. Trump pulled the U.S. out of the Paris climate change agreement and the Iranian nuclear deal and imposed tariffs on goods from Europe.