U.S. President Barack Obama is hosting European Union leaders at the White House Monday for this year's U.S.-EU Summit.

The European debt crisis is likely to be a focus of the talks. A White House statement released last month said President Obama and the visiting EU officials also will discuss their continuing coordination on Iran and joint work to support democracy and prosperity in Europe and across the Middle East and North Africa. Other issues on the agenda include transatlantic law enforcement and counterterrorism cooperation.

Those attending the White House summit include European Council President Herman Van Rompuy, European Commission President José Manuel Barroso and High Representative Catherine Ashton.

The last U.S.-EU summit was held a year ago in Lisbon, Portugal.

This year's gathering comes as the 27-nation EU struggles to agree on measures aimed at ending the crisis in the eurozone – the group of 17 EU nations that use the euro as their currency.