Ukraine and Greece are two thorns in the Merkel-Obama meeting

German Chancellor Angela Merkel meets with U.S. President Barack Obama on Monday

German Chancellor Angela Merkel makes her way to the White House on Monday to brief U.S. President Barack Obama on pending talks on a peace plan for Ukraine. The two are aiming to show a united front despite a rift in their views concerning the armament of Ukrainian fighters against Russian-backed separatists.

Merkel is against sending weapons to the Ukraine and said on Saturday that she “cannot imagine any situation in which improved equipment for the Ukrainian army leads to President (Vladimir) Putin being so impressed that he believes he will lose militarily.”

Another thorny point of discussion between the two leaders concerns Greece following Obama’s unprecedented call of support to Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras. The U.S. President has endorsed the newly-created government’s negotiating position, breaking the silence typically held by the United States on Europe’s monetary union. His comment came a day after Merkel said that Greece should not expect more debt relief and must maintain austerity.

White House Spokesman Josh Earnest said that U.S. Vice President Joe Biden is in Brussels and Munich for meetings with Europen leaders aimed at improving security and economic aid to Ukraine. No doubt, he will also urge eurozone leaders to compromise with Athens, following a Financial Times Article that states taht the Obama administration is pushing in this direction.

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