Pence to travel to Europe for conferences on security, Middle East

Vice President Pence will travel to Europe for a pair of conferences next month focused on the Middle East and international security, his office announced Wednesday.

Pence will be in Europe Feb. 13-16. He will first stop in Warsaw for the Ministerial to Promote a Future of Peace and Security in the Middle East, which is being jointly hosted by the U.S. and Poland. He will then travel to Germany for the Munich Security Conference.

The vice president will “reaffirm the Administration’s commitment to international peace and stability, recognizing the value of strategic partnerships in the Middle East, as well as our shared global security responsibilities,” Alyssa Farah, a spokeswoman for Pence, said in a statement.

NEWS: @VP will travel to Poland in February for the Ministerial to Promote a Future of Peace & Security in the Middle East & to Germany for the Munich Security Conference pic.twitter.com/pU3PJqMGxT

— Alyssa Farah (@VPPressSec) January 30, 2019

{mosads}The conference in Poland is likely to include discussion of international policies toward Iran and Syria.

The Trump administration has taken a hard-line approach toward Iran, pulling out of the Obama-era nuclear pact with the country and reimposing sanctions. Administration officials have portrayed Iran as a grave threat to U.S. security, though intelligence leaders said Tuesday the country was not currently developing nuclear weapons.

President Trump in December announced plans to withdraw U.S. troops from war-torn Syria. The move raised concerns among lawmakers and international partners who warned that an abrupt pullout could destabilize the region and embolden the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS).

Pence said earlier this month that ISIS has been defeated. His remarks came hours after the terrorist group claimed responsibility for an attack that killed four Americans.

Trump administration officials, including Pence and former national security adviser H.R. McMaster, traveled to last year’s security conference in Munich. A bipartisan group of lawmakers also typically attends the conference.

The timing of Pence’s trip next month will keep the vice president out of the country on Feb. 15, when funding for parts of the federal government are set to expire.

Pence previously led negotiations with congressional lawmakers during a 35-day shutdown that ended last week, though Trump at times undercut the vice president’s position and indicated he did not expect the vice president to reach a deal with Democrats.

Trump triggered the recent shutdown with his demand for $5.7 billion in funding for a border wall. He signed legislation last week to reopen the government for three weeks that did not include money for the structure. He has threatened to shutter the government again, or declare a national emergency should lawmakers not come to a satisfactory agreement in the coming weeks.