U.S. Ambassador Dismisses UK Foreign Secretary Miliband's Past Trump Criticism
L'essentiel
U.S. Ambassador Warren Stephens downplayed new UK Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband's past harsh criticism of Donald Trump, stating Miliband's views likely changed and that past remarks are often regretted, as both nations prepare for potential future collaboration.
Résumé généré par IA
Pourquoi c'est important
New UK Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband, appointed by Prime Minister Andy Burnham, previously made strong critical remarks about Donald Trump, calling him a “racist, misogynistic self-confessed groper” and criticizing his “idiocy.”
LONDON — U.S. Ambassador to the U.K. Warren Stephens on Thursday brushed off strident past criticism of Donald Trump from Britain’s new Foreign Secretary, Ed Miliband.
Miliband, who become Britain’s top diplomat Monday under new Prime Minister Andy Burnham, called Trump a “racist, misogynistic self-confessed groper” after his first election victory in 2016, and subsequently said the U.S. president had “lowered the bar for idiocy.”
But Stephens told Sky News Thursday “those were some time ago, I think, and, hopefully, his views have changed.”
Pushed on whether Miliband could work effectively with his White House counterparts, Stephens said only: “People were people. People’s view of President Trump in 2016 is probably a lot different than it is … now.”
While Miliband was “wrong then,” Stephens acknowledged he had also made remarks “where you come back a few years later and say, Yeah, why did I say that? I don’t think that’s really right.”
Miliband was previously quizzed about his combative comments following the U.S. president’s second election victory in 2024. He has described his prior statements as “irrelevant,” adding: “I genuinely don’t think that Donald Trump is reading my tweets. I don’t have such a high opinion of myself.”
The foreign secretary’s predecessor-but-one, David Lammy, also had a history of posting critical tweets about Trump before taking on the top diplomacy job. But he was able to point to a friendship with U.S. Vice President JD Vance.
Questions ouvertes
- How will Ed Miliband's past comments affect his working relationship with the U.S. if Trump is re-elected?
- What specific actions will Miliband take to build rapport with potential future U.S. administrations?
