White House chief strategist Stephen Bannon questioned the effectiveness of the European Union (EU) during his meeting with Germany's ambassador to Washington a week before Vice President Pence's trip to the continent, Reuters reported on Tuesday.



Several sources familiar with the talks told Reuters that Bannon expressed a view that the EU is a flawed concept and that he prefers bilateral diplomacy with Europe.



The sources also said that the meeting lasted awhile, with Bannon clearly expressing his views to the German official.



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On Monday, Pence voiced a different message to the EU as he pledged to support and cooperate with the international body.

“Today it is my privilege on behalf of President Trump to express the strong commitment of the United States to continued cooperation and partnership with the European Union,” the vice president said.

"There appears to be no understanding in the White House that an unraveling of the EU would have grave consequences," one source told Reuters.A White House official confirmed the meeting but said that the account of the conversation is inaccurate. The official also maintained that the meeting was too short to have a serious discussion on international relations."They only spoke for about three minutes, and it was just a quick hello," the official told Reuters.