They will discuss at Camp David the framework for a summit of G8 leaders planned for November that may include China, India and other major economies.

The Europeans want the summit to pave the way for talks on an overhaul of the world's financial regulatory systems.

Earlier, Mr Sarkozy said that without regulation there could be no freedom. Addressing a recent meeting of French-speaking countries in Quebec City, Canada, he said the crisis was “an opportunity to change our bad habits... to reflect differently on economic growth”.

“The world is confronted by the worst economic and financial crisis since the 1930s. We need to reflect on the stakes, how we arrived here, who is responsible, and what happened,” Mr Sarkozy told delegates of the Francophonie.

On October 17, President Bush defended his government US$700bn bail-out plan of US financial institutions, which includes a US$250-billion scheme to buy stakes in leading banks similar to those earlier announced by European states, and stressed that intervention in the free markets was necessary to preserve them.

The president also spoke of the co-ordinated effort with Europe in tackling the global economic crisis, saying: “Our European partners are taking bold steps. They show the world that we're determined to overcome this challenge together”.