US President Joe Biden will be virtually hosting the first ever I2U2 summit on July 14, 2022. The meeting will be attended by the heads of other member states, which include India, Israel and the UAE.

Biden, who will join the virtual summit from Jerusalem, is currently on his first ever state visit to the Middle East after he took office in early 2021. He is visiting Israel and Saudi Arabia.

Also read: I2u2 summit: What is on the agenda?

The White House previously said that the I2U2 meeting is part of the Biden administration’s plan to “re-energise and revitalise” America’s older alliances across the globe. The summit would also be aimed at testing the global acceptability of the Abraham Accords.

Ned Price, the spokesperson of the US State Department, said in a statement, “Part of our approach from the start is not only to revitalise and re-energise our system of alliances and partnerships around the world, but also to stitch together partnerships that did not exist previously or were not utilised to their full extent.”

Also read: What is I2U2?

The agenda of the I2U2 summit involves six key areas of cooperation. These include space, food security, health, energy, transportation and water. Defence and security has been left out, for now at least.

On his trip to Israel, Biden is expected to visit a key missile defense installation as he tries to reassure Israelis that the United States is committed to the country’s protection, as previously promised. This is also likely to spill over at the I2U2 summit.

Also read: I2U2 summit: India’s role in the new grouping

What about Ukraine?

Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine has complicated America’s relations with some countries. For example, India and US were at a diplomatic impasse earlier this year after New Delhi refused to condemn the invasion and continued to purchase oil from Russia at a discount.

Also read: Why is I2U2 is being called ‘Quad of the west’?

The UAE joined India in abstaining its vote for a Security Council resolution, which aimed to denounce Russia’s aggression in Ukraine. This briefly strained US’ relations with the two countries.