US President Joe Biden and British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak agreed on Thursday on the “Atlantic Declaration” to strengthen economic relations between the two countries, in another sign of the allies turning their backs on globalization and trying to cut China off from key supply chains.
The ad aims to increase trade between the US and the UK in areas such as defence, nuclear materials and critical metals used in electric car batteries, as part of Biden’s bid to build “economic security” among the Western allies.
Biden, who spoke after talks between the two at the White House, endorsed Sunak’s bid to provide leadership in the debate on regulating artificial intelligence, including hosting the first global summit on the issue this fall.
“We’re looking to Great Britain to help lead a way through this,” Biden said. “There is no country that we have more confidence in to help negotiate our way through this.” “We are on a steady path,” he added.
Speaking in the Oval Office, Sunak said the world was on the brink of the biggest technological change since the Industrial Revolution, but that this also gave adversaries “more tools to inflict damage” on Western democracies.
Biden, who apologized for mistakenly calling Sunak “Mr. President,” referred to the wartime relationship between Roosevelt and Churchill. But British officials said the Atlantic Declaration was an unsentimental attempt to forge a forward-looking relationship between the United States and the United Kingdom based on economic security.
The agreement comes after hopes of a comprehensive free trade deal between the United States and Britain – the dream of Britain’s Eurosceptic conservatives – were dashed.
The announcement is an admission by Sunak, a free market and opponent of government subsidies, that it must work with a Biden administration that uses industrial policy and tax breaks to promote green technology.
And it seeks to secure special US deals for the UK similar to those being negotiated by other allies such as Japan, Australia and the European Union, to build new supply chains that reduce dependence on China.
British electric car makers that use UK-made batteries — or products sourced from countries like Japan with which the US struck a deal over critical minerals — will qualify for tax credits of $3,750 per vehicle under Biden’s inflation-reducing bill, It is a major piece of legislation promoting environmental protection. technology.
Meanwhile, Biden has committed to asking Congress to approve the UK as a “local source” under US defense procurement laws, which British officials have claimed would allow faster and more efficient collaboration on new military technology.
The announcement also targets other niche deals, including a “data bridge” to cut red tape for small exporting companies.
The agreement includes a push for mutual recognition of the qualifications of engineers – and later accountants – although this may require state-by-state approval in the United States.
Sunak said people have wondered what kind of partner Britain will have after Brexit, adding: “Judge us by our actions.”
The prime minister said the UK remains an attractive investment destination and that Britain can now move “more quickly and flexibly” to create new bases for emerging technology such as artificial intelligence.
There were some silly words between the two leaders. “There is no country closer to us than the United Kingdom,” Biden said, while Sunak spoke of the “indispensable alliance”.
But British diplomats admitted that there were some clouds still hanging over the relationship, reflected in the haze caused by the Canadian forest fires that cast a shadow over the US capital during Sunak’s visit.
On the plus side, the US and UK have worked closely on Ukraine and on developing a military partnership — along with Australia — to develop nuclear-powered submarines to counter China in the Pacific.
Sunak also helped win Biden’s trust by resolving the post-Brexit dispute over Northern Ireland’s trade arrangements, although the US president said in May he had to travel to Ireland “to make sure the British don’t screw it up”.
“I am fortunate to have a good relationship with President Biden,” Sunak told reporters, while avoiding repeating the old cliché British claim of enjoying a “special relationship” with the United States.
But Biden has been a critic of Brexit, and Democrats can’t understand why Sunak – who supported Brexit – would limit the country’s influence on their continent.
Nor do Biden and Sunak of the free market see eye to eye on the president’s policy of government subsidies to promote green technology. By contrast, the UK Labor opposition has fully endorsed the idea.
But they both face voters in 2024 – likely to run simultaneous campaigns next fall – adding to the list of challenges bringing the two leaders closer together.
