Warm words but wishy-washy results at EU-US summit - by Lucia Kubosova
BRUSSELS - Standing side by side with US president George W. Bush after a bilateral summit, EU leaders toned down their rhetoric on controversial issues highlighted before the meeting, despite not having any concrete commitments from Washington on visas, trade talks or climate change.The EU sent a number of strong messages before the one-day gathering on Wednesday (21 June), pledging to be tough and call for real moves in several areas on the US side. Apart from Guantanamo - which Mr Bush said he would like to end but has to wait for a Supreme Court decision - the loudest pre-summit noise was made on the issue of a two-tier visa system for EU member states.
EU officials warned they may introduce retaliatory measures if the US does not outline further steps to resolve the problem. However, while Mr Barroso mentioned the subject had been raised in Vienna - as "an important issue for the EU" - the statement in the joint declaration does not look to any real move in the foreseeable future.
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