The U.S. Senate will need to address the nation's debt ceiling in coming weeks, Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said on Sunday, vowing to tackle it and other major issues in a "productive" session before the current Congress ends.

"The debt ceiling of course, is something that we have to deal with, and it's something that we will look at over the next few weeks," the Senate's top Democrat said at a news conference in New York City.

US Democrats maintain Senate majority

Democratic leaders in the Senate will meet this week to discuss their legislative path forward, Schumer added, declining to discuss any specifics.