Brussels diplomats mourn end of US-hosted ‘like-minded’ dinners – POLITICO

For years, U.S. ambassadors used intimate dinners to bring together European allies, compare notes and build consensus in Brussels — a tradition that diplomats say has largely disappeared since Donald Trump returned to the White House.

The regular suppers, usually hosted at the U.S. ambassador’s residence in the affluent suburb of Uccle, brought together a carefully curated mix of envoys from EU countries, close partners such as the U.K. or Japan, and senior European officials for off-the-record conversations on trade, security and foreign policy.

The soirées were among the most useful diplomatic forums in town, said nine current and former diplomats from EU and non-EU countries, all of whom were granted anonymity to discuss their experiences of the confidential gatherings. The “like-minded” dinners, as American diplomats referred to them, were held roughly once a month with usually fewer than a dozen participants.