Boris Johnson and Joe Biden will set out their joint vision for a “sustainable global recovery” from the coronavirus pandemic when they meet ahead of the G7 summit in Cornwall.
Holding their first face-to-face talks on Thursday, the leaders are expected to agree what has been billed as a new Atlantic Charter – a reference to the declaration of post-war cooperation between Winston Churchill and President Franklin D Roosevelt in 1941.
According to Downing Street, the meeting will focus on climate change, security, the global trading system and defending democracy, as well as efforts to coordinate how transatlantic travel can resume safely.
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What is the G7?
The ongoing issues in Northern Ireland related to disagreements between the EU and UK over the implementation of the Brexit protocol will also be discussed.
In a statement ahead of the talks the prime minister said: “While Churchill and Roosevelt faced the question of how to help the world recover following a devastating war, today we have to reckon with a very different but no less intimidating challenge – how to build back better from the coronavirus pandemic.
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Image: Winston Churchill and Franklin D Roosevelt’s Atlantic Charter set out goals for after the war
“The agreements President Biden and I will make today, rooted as they are in our shared values and outlook, will form the foundation of a sustainable global recovery.
“Eighty years ago the US President and British Prime Minister stood together promising a better future. Today we do the same.”
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Earlier this week, The Atlantic reported Boris Johnson‘s dislike of the phrase ‘special relationship’, with the magazine suggesting he believed it made the UK seem “needy and weak”.
In the statement ahead of his meeting with President Biden, Mr Johnson omitted any reference to the term, instead describing the UK and US as “the closest of partners and the greatest of allies”.
Image: The Northern Ireland Protocol is also set to be on the agenda
In addition to the commitments in the new Atlantic Charter, the leaders will also identify shared policy priorities, including:
• A UK-US taskforce bringing together both country’s transport departments to work towards the safe resumption of international travel
• Reducing the barriers UK tech firms face when working with US counterparts
• Improving the UK-US economic relationship by finding a resolution to the trade dispute around subsidies, which has seen tariffs imposed in relation Airbus and Boeing
The area where there is the greatest risk of disagreement is thought to be over the situation in Northern Ireland, where a dispute with the EU over the UK government’s implementation of the protocol governing customs checks has resulted in growing tensions and the risk of a trade war.
On Wednesday Mr Biden’s national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, said: “President Biden believes and has said that the Northern Ireland Protocol, as part of the agreement between the UK and the European Union, is critical to ensuring that the spirit, promise and future of the Good Friday Agreement is protected.”
Donald Trump has responded to so-called “No Kings” rallies with an AI video of himself in a fighter jet, pouring brown sludge over protesters.
Millions of people were expected to take part in the demonstrations this weekend – the second such gathering after an initial nationwide day of protest in June coinciding with the US president’s birthday.
The term “No Kings” reflects the belief by some that Mr Trump is behaving like a “king” and some in his administration are depicting him as a monarch.
Image: A protester in costume as Donald Trump presents the president as a prisoner in chains in Seattle. Pic: AP
Image: One of the rallies in New York. Pic: Reuters
On Sunday, the president shared the AI video on his social media platform, Truth Social.
In the clip, an AI-generated version of Mr Trump is wearing a crown and sitting in a jet with “King Trump” written across it, to the soundtrack of Kenny Loggins’ Danger Zone, from the film Top Gun.
The jet then drops thick brown sludge on to AI-generated protesters.
Supporters say the marches are a patriotic defence of free speech, while critics are calling them anti-American.
Image: A large inflatable effigy of Mr Trump in Chicago. Pic: Reuters
Image: This protest took place in Washington DC. Pic: AP
Mr Trump’s Republican Party has dismissed the demonstrations as “Hate America” rallies.
Many of the events featured marching bands, huge banners and signs, as well as effigies of the president and demonstrators wearing inflatable costumes.
Image: Thousands gathered along the waterfront in Portland, Oregon. Pic: AP
Image: Protesters at the Wyoming State Capitol got creative with their signs. Pic: Wyoming Tribune Eagle/AP
The protests follow Mr Trump’s return to the White House and come against the backdrop of a government shutdown which has closed federal programmes and services.
There has also been criticism of what some see as an aggressive executive, confronting Congress and the courts, in ways that protest organisers believe are a slide toward authoritarianism.
Image: This event in San Francisco was among thousands taking place across the US. Pic: Reuters
Image: A ‘No Kings’ sign, outside City Hall in Los Angeles. Pic: Reuters
So far, the atmosphere at most of the protests appears to have been largely energetic and upbeat, with protesters calling for accountability and protections for civil liberties.
Organisers said events would be peaceful – a direct response to Republican and Trump administration claims that the protests could be unsafe.
Two survivors of a US airstrike, targeting what Donald Trump has described as a “drug-carrying submarine” in the Caribbean, have been repatriated to their home countries.
“It was my great honor to destroy a very large DRUG-CARRYING SUBMARINE that was navigating towards the United States on a well known narcotrafficking transit route,” Mr Trump wrote on Truth Social.
“US intelligence confirmed this vessel was loaded up with mostly Fentanyl, and other illegal narcotics,” he added.
The US military staged a helicopter rescue for the survivors on Thursday after the strike on their semi-submersible vessel, suspected of trafficking illegal narcotics. They were then transported to a US Navy warship.
Two other crew members on board were killed.
Image: The semi-submersible vessel was struck by US forces on Thursday, leaving two dead and two survivors. Pic: @realDonaldTrump/Truth Social
President Trump confirmed the survivors would be returned to their home countries of Colombia and Ecuador “for detention and prosecution”. Both countries subsequently confirmed they had been handed over.
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“America will not tolerate narcoterrorists trafficking illegal drugs, by land or by sea,” he added.
On Saturday, Colombian President Gustavo Petro posted on X: “We have received the Colombian detained on the narco submarine, we are happy he is alive and he will be processed according to the law.”
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1:58
Trump sends CIA into Venezuela and threatens land attack
The Trump administration has said previous strikes in the Caribbean have killed 27 people, raising concerns among some about the legality of the military operations.
The strikes also come against the backdrop of a US military buildup in the Caribbean that includes guided missile destroyers, F-35 fighter jets, a nuclear submarine and around 6,500 troops as the US president escalates a standoff with the Venezuelan government.
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0:59
Venezuelan president: ‘We don’t want a war’
On Wednesday, Mr Trump disclosed he had authorised the CIA to conduct covert operations inside Venezuela, adding to speculation in Caracas that the US is attempting to topple Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.
Mr Maduro has denied any connection to drug smuggling and claimed the US boat strikes are a pretext for regime change, and violations of sovereignty and international law.
Thousands of so-called “No Kings” rallies are being held across the US to protest at what organisers are calling Donald Trump’s “crackdowns on First Amendment rights”.
Millions of people are expected to take part in the demonstrations – the second such gathering, after an initial nationwide day of protest in June, coinciding with the US president’s birthday.
The term “No Kings” reflects the belief by some that the US president is behaving like a “king” and some in his administration are depicting him as a monarch.
Supporters are framing the marches as a patriotic defence of free speech, while critics are calling them anti-American.
Here are some of the pictures emerging from the rallies.
Image: People attend a ‘No Kings’ protest in New York. Pic: Reuters
Image: A Donald Trump is presented as a prisoner in chains in Seattle. Pic: AP
Image: Some protest marches, like this one in Washington DC, have the appearance of a colourful parade. Pic: AP
Donald Trump’s Republican Party has dismissed the demonstrations as “Hate America” rallies, but in many places the events looked more like a street party.
There were marching bands, huge banners and signs, effigies of the president and demonstrators wearing inflatable costumes.
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Image: A large inflatable effigy of Donald Trump in Chicago. Pic: Reuters
Image: Thousands gather along a waterfront in Portland, Oregon. Pic: AP
Image: Protesters at the Wyoming State Capitol are been creative with their signs. Pic: Wyoming Tribune Eagle/AP
The protests follow Donald Trump’s return to the White House and come against the backdrop of a government shutdown which has closed federal programmes and services.
There has also been criticism of what some see as an aggressive executive, confronting Congress and the courts, in ways that protest organisers believe are a slide toward authoritarianism.
Image: This event in San Francisco is among thousands taking place across the US. Pic: Reuters
Image: A ‘No Kings’ sign, outside City Hall in Los Angeles, represents a protest against what is seen as increasingly authoritarian rule. Pic: Reuters
So far, the atmosphere at most of the protests appears largely energetic and upbeat, with protesters calling for accountability and protections for civil liberties.
Organisers insist today’s events will be peaceful – a direct response to Republican and Trump administration claims that the protests could be unsafe.