Biden to travel to U.K. and Brussels for first foreign trip as president
23 April 2021
President Biden will travel to the U.K. on June 11-13 for the G7 summit, followed by a trip to Brussels on June 14 for the NATO summit, the White House announced Friday.
Why it matters: Biden's first overseas trip since becoming president — which has been delayed due to the pandemic — will be used to reaffirm the U.S. commitment to multilateralism, following four years of strained relations with European allies under former President Trump.
What to watch: At the G7, hosted this year in Cornwall, England, Biden will "work to advance key U.S. policy priorities on public health, economic recovery, and climate change," according to the White House. He'll also have bilateral meetings with other G7 leaders, including U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
- In Brussels, Biden will attend the NATO summit and "affirm the United States’ commitment to NATO, Transatlantic security, and collective defense." The White House noted that Biden will discuss "how to ensure effective burden sharing," which was a key priority of the Trump administration.
- Biden will also participate in a U.S.-EU summit while in Brussels.
Flashback: Trump's first overseas trip as president was to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, foreshadowing what would become one of his administration's most valued relationships.
Transcripts show George Floyd told police "I can't breathe" over 20 times
Section2Newly released transcripts of bodycam footage from the Minneapolis Police Department show that George Floyd told officers he could not breathe more than 20 times in the moments leading up to his death.
Why it matters: Floyd's killing sparked a national wave of Black Lives Matter protests and an ongoing reckoning over systemic racism in the United States. The transcripts "offer one the most thorough and dramatic accounts" before Floyd's death, The New York Times writes.
The state of play: The transcripts were released as former officer Thomas Lane seeks to have the charges that he aided in Floyd's death thrown out in court, per the Times. He is one of four officers who have been charged.
- The filings also include a 60-page transcript of an interview with Lane. He said he "felt maybe that something was going on" when asked if he believed that Floyd was having a medical emergency at the time.
What the transcripts say:
- Floyd told the officers he was claustrophobic as they tried to get him into the squad car.
- The transcripts also show Floyd saying, "Momma, I love you. Tell my kids I love them. I'm dead."
- Former officer Derek Chauvin, who had his knee on Floyd's neck for over eight minutes, told Floyd, "Then stop talking, stop yelling, it takes a heck of a lot of oxygen to talk."
Read the transcripts via DocumentCloud.