WASHINGTON — Democratic presidential contender Barack Obama intends to sit down with European leaders as well as King Abdullah of Jordan, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas as part of a campaign-season trip that aides described Friday as substantive rather than political.
The Illinois senator also is slated to meet with opposition leaders in Israel and Britain.
Officials have yet to provide precise dates for the trip, citing security details. They said they were not yet ready to disclose where in Berlin that Obama will speak when he delivers an address on U.S.-European relations.
“The trip is not at all a campaign trip, a rally of any sort,” said spokesman Robert Gibbs. He said Obama would hold “a series of substantive meetings with our friends and our allies to talk about the common challenges that we face and the national security dangers for the 21st century.”
A foreign policy adviser said Obama would meet with Chancellor Angela Merkel and Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier in Germany, President Nicolas Sarkozy in France and Prime Minister Gordon Brown as well as Conservative Party Leader David Cameron in Britain.
In Israel, he said, Obama will meet with Olmert as well as President Shimon Peres, Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni and Defense Minister Ehud Barak. Palestinian leaders have said Obama will visit the West Bank for his talks with Abbas.
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