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New opposition to Trump's UK visit
US President Donald Trump’s remarks on the London Bridge terror attack have led to fresh efforts to block his state visit to the UK.
Much opposition was raised inside and outside Britain’s Parliament earlier this year over a proposed visit by US President Donald Trump following his remarks about alleged “no-go” areas in London and elsewhere, but Saturday’s terror attack has renewed the opposition.
Nearly two million people signed an online petition seeking to stop Trump making a state visit after he was invited during Prime Minister Theresa May’s trip to the US in January. No date has yet been finalised for the visit.
The latest opposition comes after Trump sought to ridicule the response of London mayor Sadiq Khan to last week’s terror attack, in which seven people were killed. His Twitter tirade against Khan did not evince a response from May, who confined herself to saying Khan was doing a good job as mayor.
Khan, who initially chose to ignore Trump’s comments on the ground that he had more important things to do, called on the May government to cancel the proposed visit. Trump, he said, was wrong on “many things”.
“I don’t think we should roll out the red carpet to the president of the USA in the circumstances where his policies go against everything we stand for. When you have a special relationship it is no different from when you have got a close mate,” he told Channel 4.
“You stand with them in times of adversity but you call them out when they are wrong. There are many things about which Donald Trump is wrong.”
Trump made much news in the British media after suggesting that leaving the European Union would be a good thing before the June 2016 referendum. His plans to impose a ban on Muslims from certain countries and leaving the Paris agreement have been widely criticised here.
Historically, Britain and the US have what is called a “special relationship”.
