UK-US ‘special relationship’ in the spotlight once again
https://arab.news/4gyny
Every time a newly elected UK leader sets off to see the American president of the day, the press in Britain and some in the US start to fret about whether “the world’s closest allies” enjoy a “special relationship,” one merely born of necessity or one that is built on transactional needs and interests.
In all cases, it is surely a relationship built on common values, similar political roots, shared language and cultural affinities. But it is also one that changes depending on the whims of the occupant of the White House, not of 10 Downing Street.
Friday’s visit by Keir Starmer, his second to the US since becoming prime minister in July, comes at a tricky time, as Joe Biden is in the last months of his presidency, having decided to drop out of this year’s election race and pass the mantle of being the Democratic candidate to Kamala Harris, his vice president.
Biden and Starmer will discuss their continuing robust support for Ukraine in its defense against Russian aggression and the need to secure a hostage release and ceasefire deal to end the war in Gaza. Their talks will also cover the attacks on shipping by Yemen’s Iranian-backed Houthi rebels and, in a reference to countering Chinese influence, ensuring a “free and open” Asia-Pacific. And, of course, they will discuss how to make the UK-US relationship even more special.
While US-UK relations have persevered across partisan lines, Labour has traditionally been closer in its core principles to Biden’s Democratic Party. But for Starmer, a full alignment with the Democrats’ agenda could carry risks just two months before a US election in which Biden’s political heir, Harris, is running neck and neck with Republican candidate Donald Trump.
Over the years, I have covered many US presidential visits to the UK, when presidents and their entourages have descended on London with bigger cars and bigger security details than the historic old streets of the British capital are used to accommodating. During these visits, one never fails to notice the UK’s efforts to play the full role of a seducer in a bid to win the heart of the US leader, as well as his country and his people. And in a somewhat vain sort of way, London is often inclined to show off the visit to boast about its special relationship with the US, especially vis-a-vis its European neighbors and other partners, in pre-Brexit times of course. This reflects the UK’s historical island mentality and its Atlanticist inclination at the expense of its geography.
In these post-Brexit days, I am minded to question the appeal of this so-called special relationship. Since leaving the EU, the UK, in American eyes at least, has shed a lot of the weight it once used to be able to offer its transatlantic partner, in terms of influence and standing through being a bridge between the US and Europe. The position and appeal of the UK has been dented and I tend to believe that it is no longer seen as a key player balancing and often mediating the triangular relationship of politics, leadership and power between the UK, US and EU.
After 1946, when British Prime Minister Winston Churchill first put the phrase “special relationship” into diplomatic usage — and despite most diplomats’ coolness about the term — London succeeded in nurturing it against all the odds and despite all the ups and downs.
The 1980s were particularly good times, as Margaret Thatcher called Ronald Reagan “the second most important man in my life” after her husband. That special relationship must have had an impact on what followed, such as the fall of the Berlin Wall and the collapse of the Soviet Union. In the 1990s, Tony Blair’s close relationship with Bill Clinton, a Democrat, and their common “third way” vision did not prevent the Republican George W. Bush from considering Blair the person he most liked talking to. However, following the post-9/11 invasion of Afghanistan and Blair joining Bush in his unpopular invasion of Iraq, the prime minister earned the title of being the president’s “poodle.” And the jury is still out on how positive it was for then-President Trump to call Boris Johnson “Britain Trump.”
In affairs of the state, relationships, no matter how special or otherwise, are seldom measured on sentiments. They are instead based on the ability to advance trade and investment, as well as upholding a shared vision of the world. In the case of US-UK ties today, this is being tested by the rise of populism, far-right politics, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the emergence of a bolder China and attempts to redesign the world along the lines of a “global majority” versus the West, which is leading to more discord in an increasingly fractured world.
For Starmer, a full alignment with the Democrats’ agenda could carry risks just two months before a US election.
Mohamed Chebaro
No matter what Biden and Starmer agree this week, it could all come to an abrupt end in the case of Trump winning November’s US election. Such dialogue might also rub the UK’s EU partners the wrong way, since Starmer has expressed his intention to reset the London-Brussels ties that were damaged due to Brexit.
Historically speaking, US presidents have often taken an isolationist “America First” approach long before Trump. But for their own security they ended up intervening in two world wars and, subsequently, Washington took the lead with Britain in founding the new international order. This history has often been repeated by UK officials in an attempt to sway the Trump team about Ukraine, but with limited success.
Though Starmer’s chances of meeting with Harris and Trump this week are nought, as both are busy campaigning, it is hoped that Starmer will keep this special relationship alive during his time in Downing Street, despite all adversities nationally and internationally. After leaving the EU, the UK is surely in need of friends, even if they are far away and even if they have been resistant to signing any post-Brexit trade agreement. The UK and US have a shared history and their destinies have been intertwined for many decades, as they have made both good and bad choices in their efforts to lead an ever-changing world.
- Mohamed Chebaro is a British Lebanese journalist with more than 25 years of experience covering war, terrorism, defense, current affairs and diplomacy. He is also a media consultant and trainer.
