BAB welcomes President Trump’s visit to the United Kingdom and calls for the reaffirmation of the st

New York / London – On 12 – 13 July 2018, Donald J. Trump, President of the United States of America is visiting the United Kingdom, following the NATO Summit in Brussels, Belgium. This visit also follows the 4th meeting of the UK-US Trade and Investment Working Group (TIWG) in London this week.

BritishAmerican Business (BAB), which represents major US investors and leading UK companies, welcomes the President to the UK and the momentum that this visit creates for the special relationship between the UK and the US.

As the single largest investor in each other’s economy, the US and the UK share an unrivalled special relationship that stands as a source of strength and stability for both nations, founded on a long history of shared values, and which provides innumerable economic opportunities for its respective citizens.

The British-American Business Community stands ready to support efforts to open a new chapter in the transatlantic trade and investment relationship.

BritishAmerican Business CEO, Duncan Edwards:

“This was never going to be an easy visit for the UK government, and the timing, coinciding with the publication of the UK’s negotiating position for the desired relationship with the EU post-Brexit, makes it even more complicated.

Unlike his predecessor, President Trump has called for a comprehensive trade agreement with the UK and these wishes have been echoed by the Prime Minister and the Secretary of State for International Trade. Negotiating such an agreement was always going to be tough, but how it can be achieved at all, if the UK is tied into the EU regulatory rule book on goods, agriculture and food, is a mystery.

We call for a robust discussion, as there should be between friends, on the subject of global trade and the current escalation of tariffs. But this discussion must also address the root causes of US frustration with the WTO, its rules on tariffs and its ineffectiveness in dealing with transgressions. This has been of concern to successive US administrations and will not go away.

Finally, whatever the outcome of the Brexit negotiations and the current tariff disputes, which history shows come and go, we call for a reaffirmation of the enormous success of the US-UK relationship. It is the cornerstone of the western security alliance and when aggregating trade in goods, services, investment and employment, by far the world’s most successful bilateral economic relationship.”

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For enquiries please contact Dominic Parker, Communications Manager dparker@babinc.org 020 7290 9882