Sitting alongside Trump in the club ballroom, von der Leyen said she was “very much looking forward to the discussions we will have now … our staff have done the heavy lifting, but it’s on us now.”
She also rated the chances of a deal at 50-50.
The talks follow a two-week standoff triggered by Trump, who in a letter to von der Leyen threatened to jack up tariffs on most EU goods to 30 percent if no deal were done by Aug. 1.
In a first sign that a breakthrough had been in the offing, von der Leyen announced on Friday she would fly to meet Trump in Scotland, where the U.S. president was on a private visit.
This story is being updated.