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British Leader Seeks to Forge His Own Ties With Bush, U.S.

Posted on: Monday, 30 July 2007, 06:15 CDT

By David Jackson

WASHINGTON -- President Bush and British Prime Minister Gordon Brown began meetings Sunday that are as much about personal chemistry as global challenges.

"Building a personal relationship is essential to the long-term prospects of success," White House spokesman Tony Snow said.

It is the first meeting between the two as their nations' leaders. Brown took over from former prime minister Tony Blair, a key supporter of Bush's Iraq policy, on June 27.

Included on the agenda: Iraq and Afghanistan; Iran's nuclear program; and the attempted terrorist attacks in London and Glasgow, Scotland, Snow said.

The agenda also includes Middle East peace negotiations now led by Blair. Blair's close relationship with Bush and his support for the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq cost him support in the United Kingdom.

Before he left for the United States, Brown said: "I want to do more to strengthen even further our relationship with the U.S."

Brown arrived at Camp David in time for a dinner of roast beef. "It's a great pleasure to be at Camp David," Brown told Bush. "It has so much history associated with it. Do you come here quite a bit?"

"I do," Bush replied. "A lot."

Brown and Bush are scheduled to meet with reporters today, before Brown heads to New York to see United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon.

The visit comes in the wake of statements by Brown aides that suggested a cooling of U.S.-British relations. Mark Malloch Brown, the Foreign Office minister for Africa, Asia and the United Nations, said the prime minister would no longer be "joined at the hip" with Bush.

Britain also is in the process of deciding when to hand off security for the city of Basra to Iraqi forces.

Both leaders have good reasons to "at least try and keep appearances up," says Stephen Szabo, a trans-Atlantic specialist with the German Marshall Fund of the United States, a public policy group that promotes U.S.-Europe cooperation.

The British rely on the U.S. military and intelligence systems, while Bush is looking for any kind of international support he can get on Iraq and the Middle East.

Peter Reid, a former British diplomat, said Brown will bring a "change of tone" to the relationship, "but the substance will likely remain the same."

"Sensibly, Brown -- who will likely be more multilateral in his approach and more interested in soft power -- will also be seen within 24 hours alongside the U.N. secretary-general," Reid said. (c) Copyright 2005 USA TODAY, a division of Gannett Co. Inc.

Source: USA TODAY

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