Can we breathe a sigh of relief when shaking hands?

Although they have met in person four times, this is the first visit of British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak to the White House to meet US President Joe Biden. After the "ups and downs" of the UK's internal affairs and with London's current "agreeable" policies, Mr. Joe Biden is somewhat more relaxed when receiving an important guest at the White House.

US President Joe Biden and British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak at the AUKUS summit in March in San Diego, California. (Source: CNN)

Top concerns

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak began a two-day visit to Washington on June 7 to push for Britain's leadership in regulating artificial intelligence (AI), after warning that the technology could pose an existential threat.

US President Joe Biden is scheduled to host Prime Minister Sunak as the British leader makes his first visit to the White House as Prime Minister.

The talks between the two leaders in the Oval Office are expected to cover the conflict in Ukraine, the China factor, economic security, international cooperation in AI and a host of other issues.

President Biden and Prime Minister Sunak have had four face-to-face meetings since Sunak took office as British Prime Minister in October 2022, but the talks in Washington will give the two leaders the opportunity for their most sustained interaction to date.

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said the Russia-Ukraine conflict would be “top of mind.”

The United States and Britain are Ukraine's strongest supporters and have played a central role in a long-term effort announced last month to train and equip Ukrainian pilots to fly F-16 fighter jets.

Prime Minister Rishi is also seeking to persuade President Biden to support British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace to succeed NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, whose term ends in September. Mr. Stoltenberg is scheduled to meet Biden in Washington on June 12.

“The two leaders will consider a range of global issues, including our economic partnership, our shared support for Ukraine, and next steps to accelerate the clean energy transition,” said Jean-Pierre. “The President and Prime Minister will also discuss the leadership roles of the United States and the United Kingdom in important emerging technologies and enhancing the economic security of our two countries.”

Prime Minister Sunak's visit comes as US and British intelligence officials are still trying to determine the cause and responsibility for the collapse of the Kakhovka dam in southern Ukraine, which caused massive flooding in towns and farmland.

The Kakhovka Dam, located on the Dnieper River on the border between Ukrainian and Russian-controlled territory, collapsed on June 6. Neither Washington nor London has officially accused Russia of blowing up the Kakhovka dam.

On June 7, Prime Minister Sunak said British intelligence agencies were still examining the evidence, but “if this incident is proven to be intentional, it would be a terrible new development”.

Still stronger than ever

Through Prime Minister Sunak's visit, Washington and London hope to demonstrate that the US-UK relationship "remains as strong as ever" despite recent economic and political upheavals in the UK.

Mr Sunak is the third British prime minister President Biden has met since taking office in January 2021. There have been some awkward moments between the two leaders in the early going.

However, the Biden administration feels that the US-UK relationship has stabilized after the difficult tenure of Boris Johnson and the short tenure (45 days) of Liz Truss.

“There is a sense of relief, not just in the White House but across Washington, that the Sunak government has been pragmatic and maintained the UK’s strong commitment to Ukraine and increased defence spending,” said Max Bergmann, director of the Europe, Russia and Eurasia programme at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies.

He added that Prime Minister Sunak was also “somewhat returning to pragmatism” on economic issues and relations with the European Union (EU) post-Brexit.

Despite working closely with the US on everything from discussions on supplying fighter jets to Ukraine to a strong approach to China, British Prime Minister Sunak faces many difficulties in convincing allied countries about Britain's role in a post-Brexit world.

London's efforts to lead an international response to AI were evident when Matt Clifford, an adviser to the UK Prime Minister's AI taskforce and chairman of the UK's Advanced Research and Innovation Agency (ARIA), warned that AI would be powerful enough to "destroy" humanity within the next two years.

Chancellor Sunak wants the future global AI regulator to be based in London, arguing that Britain has the necessary expertise and technology sectors, sources have said.

However, Downing Street is facing difficulties as the US is in direct discussions with the EU on AI-related regulation (the EU has proposed requiring all AI-generated content to be labelled as AI content to prevent misinformation, as well as to make it easier for users to recognise that these products are not human-generated), based on a commitment by G7 leaders, including Prime Minister Sunak, in Japan last month.

Chancellor Sunak has also abandoned the idea of ​​reaching a post-Brexit trade deal with the Biden administration.

Source: https://baoquocte.vn/thu-tuong-anh-hoi-dam-voi-tong-thong-my-da-co-the-tho-phao-khi-bat-tay-nhau-230232.html