After meeting with Biden, Johnson has told British broadcasters that the new U.S. president’s approach is a “breath of fresh air.”
The British prime minister, speaking in front of a windy, mizzle-flecked Cornish beach, said the U.S-.U.K. relationship was of “massive strategic importance for the prosperity, the security of the world, for all the things we believe in together democracy, human rights, the rule of law.”
Boris Johnson says working with Joe Biden is “a breath of fresh air”.
He also says the US president has not urged him to solve problems with the Northern Ireland protocol.
“The talks were great. They went on for a long time,” Johnson continued. The session lasted more than 90 minutes.
“We covered a huge range of subjects, and it’s wonderful to listen to the Biden administration, and to Joe Biden, because there’s so much that they want to do together with us — from security, NATO, to climate change and it’s fantastic,” the prime minister said, before adding, “it’s a breath of fresh air.”
Johnson had previously dealt with Biden’s predecessor, Donald Trump. Though the British leader appeared to try and maintain a close relationship with the Republican and the two were united in their support for Brexit, there were numerous policy disputes between the United States and Britain during that period.
However, Biden has pressured Johnson on some issues, including the ongoing disputes over the Irish border caused by Britain’s decision to leave the European Union.
Johnson said that the U.S. president did not push him on the issue during their meeting on Thursday, but said that maintaining peace in Northern Ireland and supporting the Good Friday Agreement was “absolutely common ground” between Washington and London.