White House Confirms Biden’s Attendance at G7 Summit Despite US Public Debt Situation

The trip of US President Joe Biden to the G7 summit, which will be held from May 19 to 21 in Hiroshima, will take place despite the situation around the US national debt. This was announced by White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre.

“The President and G7 leaders will discuss some of the most pressing issues, including continued G-7 assistance to Ukraine, the food and climate crises, safe and inclusive economic growth, and the need to transition to green energy for us and our partners around the world,” she said. she (quote according to TASS).

Biden will travel to Hiroshima on May 17, Jean-Pierre added. When asked by reporters about a possible obstacle to the trip in the form of economic difficulties, the White House spokeswoman stressed that the US president “wants you all to know that he plans to go.”

Formerly Biden admittedthat he may refuse to travel to the G7 summit if the situation with the public debt is not resolved by that time. At the same time, he called such a scenario “unlikely.”

On May 10, the American leader held a meeting with Congress on the issue of raising the national debt ceiling, at which the risk of default on it was discussed. By words Biden, with such a development of events, the consequences will be “catastrophic”, and the US economy will fall “into a serious recession.”

The next meeting with Congress to discuss the situation around the public debt is scheduled for May 12. The White House noted that negotiations between the administration and the US Congress to prevent default are going well.

May 7 US Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen warnedthat by June 1, the US may face default if the country does not pass a bill to raise the debt ceiling.

This is not the first time the US has reached the national debt limit. In December 2021, Biden raised the limit by $2.5 trillion to $31.4 trillion. However, already in January 2023, the limit was reached again.

In this regard, at the end of April, the US House of Representatives approved raising the debt ceiling by $1.5 trillion to $32.9 trillion. The bill, announced by Republican Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy, also calls for $4.5 trillion in parallel spending cuts. Democrats do not support the proposal.