Trump endorses Johnson as ‘very good’ UK prime minister
US President Donald Trump has publicly supported Boris Johnson in his bid to become next British prime minister, saying the eurosceptic politician will be an excellent choice for the job.
“I think Boris would do a very good job. I think he would be excellent,” Trump said in an interview with the Sun newspaper published on Saturday.
A former foreign minister and mayor of London until 2016, Johnson is the frontrunner to win a leadership race in the ruling Conservative Party and become the next UK prime minister.
Johnson has been viewed as one of the key figures of a campaign that won the 2016 referendum on leaving the European Union.Trump’s comments come ahead of his arrival in the UK for a state visit on Monday.
Trump endorsed Johnson as having the required skills to become prime minister in his last trip to the UK and shortly after Johnson resigned from his post as foreign minister in protest against the government’s strategy on Brexit.
He is expected to meet British royals and Prime Minister Theresa may in London before attending an event related to Second World War commemorations in Portsmouth, in England’s south coast.
In a striking intervention ahead of the visit, Trump urged all candidates seeking to replace May in late July to pledge to boost defense spending, something he has constantly been at odds with European powers like Germany and France.
He told the Sun that other Conservative lawmakers had sought his endorsement except for Michael Gove, a main rival of Johnson in Tory leadership race who has criticized Trump for his policy on Iran.
In similar comments last week, Trump hailed Johnson and another UK eurosceptic politician Nigel Farage as "interesting" people. He said the two "friends" had done a good job in British politics over the past years.
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