The US’ real “special relationship” is with Israel rather than Britain, the UK’s ambassador to Washington is reported to have told a group of British students.
Sir Christian Turner, who took office earlier this year after Lord Mandelson was dismissed from the post following revelations about his relationship with sex offender financier Jeffrey Epstein, was recorded suggesting that America’s only “special relationship” is “probably Israel”.
The remarks, made during an event with students visiting Washington in mid-February shortly after Turner took up the role, were covertly recorded by an attendee and leaked to the Financial Times this week.
Had they been made in public, the remarks by the British ambassador, who was pictured next to King Charles at the White House on Monday, would be perceived as de facto government policy.
In the question-and-answer session, Turner said: “I think there is probably one country that has a special relationship with the United States – and that is probably Israel.”
He added that he disliked the phrase “special relationship” to describe Britain’s ties with the US, arguing that it was “quite nostalgic, it’s quite backwards-looking, and it has a lot of baggage about it”.
But he stressed that Britain’s links with America remain “so strong”, adding: “There is a deep history and affinity between us. Particularly on defence and security, we are intertwined.”
“The relationship will carry on, if you want, being ‘special’, but I think it’s going to have to be different,” he said.
Turner also argued that Britain and Europe must “work to redefine” their relationship with Washington, particularly in terms of defence, rather than relying on a US security umbrella.
The ambassador was then asked about the Epstein scandal, describing it as “extraordinary” that the convicted paedophile had “brought down a senior member of the royal family [Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor], a British ambassador to Washington, potentially the prime minister, and yet, here in the US, it really hasn’t touched anybody”.
He argued that this raised an “interesting question” about the “different levels of accountability in our systems”.
The remarks emerged as the King and Queen began a four-day state visit to Washington and New York.
The trip is understood to form part of attempts to repair the bilateral relationship following a period of strain after President Donald Trump criticised Sir Keir Starmer for refusing to support the initial US-Israel strikes against Iran.
During one conversation with reporters earlier in March, the US president said Starmer is "not Winston Churchill".
Responding to the ambassador’s leaked remarks, a Foreign Office official stressed that Turner's comments were not intended for publication.
A Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office spokesperson said: “These were private, informal comments made to a group of UK sixth-form students visiting the US in early February. They are certainly not any reflection of the UK government’s position.”
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