THE exit of Donald Trump from the White House does not look as if it will be mourned by Boris Johnson as Downing St declined to say if the Prime Minister wished the outgoing President well for the future.
But Mr Johnson’s spokesman repeatedly stressed how the PM was looking forward to working with his successor Joe Biden and working with him as the UK staged the G7 summit in June in Cornwall and the COP26 climate change conference in Glasgow in November.
Questions about Mr Johnson’s views on Mr Trump came after Lord Sedwill, the former Cabinet Secretary, suggested the PM had not wanted his fellow Conservative to serve a second term in office. The peer said those who believed Mr Johnson wanted Mr Trump to stay on in the White House were “mistaken”.
Lord Sedwill claimed another Trump term "would not have been to the benefit of British or European security[or] to transatlantic trade, let alone the environmental agenda to which the Prime Minister is so committed”.
As the outgoing Commander-in-Chief spends his final full day in the role, No 10 was asked if Mr Johnson was sad to see the back of Mr Trump.
“The PM will have a strong relationship with whoever is in the White House,” declared his spokesman at a daily press briefing.
“That was the case with President Trump and that will be the case with President Biden. You are aware of the call that the PM held with President-elect Biden and the fact he looks forward to working with him on some crucial issues, not least climate change.”
Asked if Mr Johnson wished Mr Trump well, the spokesman replied: “As I say, the PM will always have a positive relationship with the President of the United States and is looking forward to working closely with Joe Biden, not least[because] this year we are leading G7 and heading COP26.”
Asked if Mr Johnson was putting aside some time for a call with Mr Biden tomorrow, he said: “You are aware of the call the PM has already held with President-elect Biden and if there are any calls, we will let you know in the usual way.”
Pressed on whether the PM thought Mr Trump was a good President, the spokesman said: “As the PM has said before, he will have a positive relationship with whoever is President. He looks forward to working closely with Joe Biden and as I said there are a few key issues - climate change, boosting the global economy, promoting human rights - that he looks forward to working with President-elect Biden moving forward.”
Asked if Mr Johnson was proud that he had legitimised Mr Trump on the world stage, he replied: “I will just go back to what I said, the PM will always have a strong working relationship with whoever is in the White House.”
Quizzed on what Mr Johnson believed was the outgoing President’s biggest achievement, the spokesman noted: “Again, you’ve got my answer on this. The PM had a positive working relationship with President Trump and he looks forward to having a positive working relationship with the new President-elect Joe Biden.”
Mr Johnson, who has never met Mr Biden, had a phonecall with him on November 10, just three days after he was confirmed as the 46th President, when he personally invited him to the COP26 conference in Scotland.
No 10 is acutely aware that many people frowned on the PM’s close relationship with Mr Trump; the outgoing President remarked how Mr Johnson was known as “Trump Britain”.
On hearing of the Conservative victory in the 2019 General Election, Mr Biden suggested people would describe Mr Johnson as “kind of a physical and emotional clone of the President”.
Despite this, Mr Biden is expected to want to build bridges with the PM and emphasise the UK-US special relationship.
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