UK’s Cameron to meet with Trump during US visit

UK Foreign Secretary David Cameron was scheduled to meet Monday with White House hopeful Donald Trump, British officials said, ahead of talks with senior members of President Joe Biden’s administration on the wars in Gaza and Ukraine.

Cameron was due to sit down with the former US president and Republican challenger to Biden in November’s closely watched election one month after the two Americans became their parties’ presumptive White House nominees.

Cameron’s “visit to DC on Tuesday and Wednesday will follow the Foreign Secretary meeting with former President Donald Trump in Florida today,” a Foreign Office spokesperson said in a statement shared by the British embassy in Washington.

“It is standard practice for ministers to meet with opposition candidates as part of their routine international engagement,” the statement said.
Cameron then travels to Washington for discussions Tuesday with Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

While British officials were not drawn on the substance of the Trump talks, the Foreign Office said in a statement that Cameron, in his Blinken meeting, will push for a “full, urgent, and transparent investigation” into Israel’s air strike last week that killed seven aid workers in Gaza.

The UK government has faced calls to suspend arms export licences to Israel after three Britons working for US-based food charity World Central Kitchen were killed in the strike.

More than 600 lawyers, including former Supreme Court judges, warned in a letter that London risked breaching international law by continuing to allow the export of weapons to Israel.

The foreign secretary is expected to discuss arms exports during a joint press conference with Blinken at 15:30 GMT, but will not announce a change of policy, according to UK government sources.

“He will underline that the deaths of World Central Kitchen humanitarian workers are completely unacceptable and that major changes need to be made to ensure the safety of aid workers on the ground,” the foreign ministry said.

Talks between Cameron and Blinken will also focus on “the path to a sustainable ceasefire and the delivery of greater quantities of humanitarian aid in Gaza,” it added.

Cameron will also urge US Congress leaders to approve a proposed $60 billion military aid package for Ukraine that Republican lawmakers have been blocking for months.

Over $184 billion (o145 billion) has already been committed to Ukraine by European nations, including over $15 billion from the UK.

In addition, the US has committed nearly $74 billion.

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky warned on Sunday that Ukraine will lose its war with Russia if Congress does not approve the stalled package.

Cameron said ahead of his visit that “success for Ukraine and failure for Putin are vital for American and European security”. (BSS/AFP)