LONDON — Tensions in the British-American relationship moved center stage in the prime minister contest Tuesday when the two contenders for the job clashed over President Trump’s visceral attack on the British ambassador to the United States.
JULY 09, 2019 NYTIMES
The sharp exchanges in a televised debate underscored the strains on ties between the countries at a critical time for Britain, which is near a withdrawal from the European Union, or Brexit. Supporters of that move had hoped to foster closer economic relations with the United States once the British had completed their fraught — and long-delayed — divorce.
The debate comes as Britain’s Conservative Party chooses a new leader, expected to become prime minister this month. The rift with Mr. Trump featured prominently in the broader issue of Brexit during the at times ill-tempered clash.
The American president has laid into the British ambassador, Kim Darroch, over leaked internal documents in which Mr. Darroch offered his colleagues a scathing review of the Trump White House.
The president derided the ambassador as “wacky” and “a very stupid guy,” and turned his ire on the current prime minister, Theresa May, when she reaffirmed the British government’s “full support” for Mr. Darroch. Mrs. May, Mr. Trump said, was “foolish.”
At the debate Tuesday, one of the candidates, Jeremy Hunt, the foreign secretary, described Mr. Trump’s comments as “unacceptable.” Brushing aside threats from the American president to freeze the ambassador out of official Washington, Mr. Hunt promised to keep Mr. Darroch in place until his scheduled departure in January — and challenged his rival, Boris Johnson, to do the same.
Mr. Johnson, who is the clear favorite to become the next British prime minister and who appears to have a fan in Mr. Trump, declined to do so. He offered only the mildest criticism of Mr. Trump and played down the dispute, noting his good relations with the White House.
As the strange diplomatic spat heated up, the pound sterling neared a two-year low amid questions about what kind of support a post-Brexit Britain could now expect from this American administration.
Mr. Trump’s ire, and his declaration that he would no longer work with Mr. Darroch, were odd optics for two countries whose famous “special relationship” is supposed to enable them to iron out rare differences behind the scenes.
For some, the name calling by Mr. Trump raises doubts about predictions by Mr. Johnson and other Brexiteers that Britain will be able to attain a quick and “wonderful” post-Brexit trade deal with the United States, as promised by Mr. Trump.
Nigel Sheinwald, a former British ambassador to Washington, said: “President Trump’s reaction since the leak has only confirmed the accuracy of Kim Darroch’s analysis and description of him. And if the special relationship were working properly, there would be a lot of activity behind the scenes so that Darroch could operate in Washington despite the president’s anger.”
The relationship between the countries, Mr. Sheinwald said, is already under great strain “from Brexit and the policies and personality of the president.”
He added, “And a trade deal will, under any scenario, take a long time and be highly contested.”
The blowup has also put pressure on Mr. Johnson, who has cast himself in the mold of Mr. Trump, to defend the right of Britain to name its own ambassadors — whatever the mood of the White House.
On Tuesday, Mr. Johnson tried to negotiate a delicate path. Though he refused to talk about Mr. Darroch’s future, Mr. Johnson said that, as prime minister, he “alone will decide who takes important politically sensitive jobs such as the U.K. ambassador to the U.S.”
At the debate, in a series of sometimes bitter exchanges, the two candidates sparred over a range of issues.
Mr. Hunt challenged Mr. Johnson, saying he would resign as prime minister if he failed to extract Britain from the European Union by Oct. 31, as Mr. Johnson has promised. Mr. Johnson dodged that issue — and then tried to turn the tables, saying he admired Mr. Hunt’s ability “to change his mind.” The reference was to how his opponent had campaigned in 2016 against Brexit, but now supported it.
The rift with Mr. Trump has driven home the point that a Britain outside the European Union will be even more dependent on its relationship with the United States. The pound’s slide reflects those worries. However warm Mr. Trump’s words are for Mr. Johnson and for Brexit, few consider him likely to make significant trade concessions.
And given the vast unpopularity of Mr. Trump with the British public, Mr. Johnson’s embrace of the president could be politically perilous, particularly if he seems to be kowtowing in any way to him, let alone allowing the American leader to dictate British national affairs.
Apart from the battle set off by the leak, many Britons are angry that the embassy documents got out at all, in what might be a violation of the Official Secrets Act. Some lamented what they considered the increasing politicization of the Civil Service.
Others hoped that matters would blow over quickly, given the proximity of the summer holidays.
“It’s a storm in a teacup, even if it’s a big teacup and a pretty big storm,” said Christopher Meyer, a former British ambassador to Washington. “We should take this calmly, we’re almost at the summer break. By Labor Day, I think tempers will have calmed down and a new prime minister can gracefully appoint a new ambassador.”
Still, Mr. Meyer said, “Even extreme Brexiters don’t want to be seen to be dancing to Trump’s tune.”
Some of Mr. Darroch’s confidential diplomatic cables, dating from 2017, were leaked to the British tabloid The Mail on Sunday. In them, he described the Trump Administration as “clumsy and inept” and its Iran policy as incoherent.
The leak is thought to have been made by someone who wants a new ambassador more in line with Mr. Trump. Some think it was aimed less at the immediate victim, Mr. Darroch, than at Mark Sedwill, the cabinet secretary, once widely rumored to be in line to succeed him. Mr. Sedwill is said to have angered some close to Mr. Johnson.
It is also unclear how isolated Mr. Darroch will be. To be uninvited to a dinner or a meeting with Ivanka Trump is not very serious, said Mr. Meyer, the former ambassador. “But if it is to shut him out completely from the National Security Council and the White House staff, that is another thing entirely,” he said.
While the spat has cast doubt on how beneficial a trade deal with the United States would really be for Britain, it is unlikely to have much direct impact on the negotiations, if and when they happen, analysts say. The pact would not even begin to be negotiated seriously until next year, and by then Mr. Darroch would be gone.
Trade talks take a long time, said Dmitry Grozoubinski, a consultant and former trade negotiator. “These things move with the inexorable momentum of shipping tankers, and the issues they have to navigate are the size of icebergs.”
Julianne Smith, former deputy national security adviser to Vice President Joseph R. Biden, said this Trump Twitter storm, like many before it, would probably fade.
Years ago, such an ugly episode might have lasting implications for the bilateral relationship, Ms. Smith said, “but in today’s political climate, where leaders like Trump and Boris regularly break protocol and tweet every inner thought, it won’t have much of an impact.”
Even if Mr. Darroch ends up leaving Washington early, she said, “his replacement will be rubbing shoulders with administration officials before we know it.”
