US President Joe Biden to meet King and Rishi Sunak in visit to UK
The US president attended Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral last September and also made a brief trip to Northern Ireland earlier this year to mark the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement.
Sunday 2 July 2023 20:26, UK
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US President Joe Biden will meet King Charles in a visit to the UK later this month, Buckingham Palace has announced.
In a statement, the palace confirmed the US president will meet the monarch at Windsor Castle on 10 July.
Mr Biden will also meet with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak during his five-day overseas trip, starting with a stop in the UK on 9 July to the UK, before going to Lithuania and Finland.
A visit had long been anticipated and comes after Mr Sunak visited Washington last month for talks with the US president.
Mr Biden attended the funeral of the King’s mother, Queen Elizabeth II, last September and joined him and other leaders for an evening reception before the ceremony.
The White House said: “President Biden will first travel to London, United Kingdom for engagements with King Charles III and Prime Minister Rishi Sunak to further strengthen the close relationship between our nations.”
Downing Street said Mr Sunak “looks forward to welcoming President Biden in the UK later this month”.
A No 10 spokesperson added that the upcoming visit “reflects the strong relationship” between the UK and US, and further details will be set out in due course.
After visiting the UK, the White House said Mr Biden will then travel to the Lithuanian capital Vilnius from 11 to 12 July to attend the 74th NATO Summit.
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Biden addresses Irish parliament
He will then visit Helsinki on 13 July for a meeting with Nordic leaders.
The apparently short trip by Mr Biden comes after the US and the UK announced a new partnership, the ‘Atlantic Declaration’, to bolster economic security.
Announced during Mr Sunak’s visit to the White House, it included commitments on easing trade barriers, closer defence industry ties and a data protection deal.
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Mr Biden also made a brief trip to Northern Ireland earlier this year to mark the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement, meeting the prime minister for brief talks in Belfast.
The US president claimed in May that he visited the island of Ireland earlier this year to ensure the “Brits didn’t screw around”, amid ongoing US concern about the impact of Brexit on the peace process.
During that visit, the president told the Irish parliament that he believed the UK should be working more closely with the administration in Dublin to support Northern Ireland.
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