"Our two nations are twin pillars for the security of our people, for economic freedom, and for liberal values, the rule of law; all of the things that our two nations hold dear…our commitment to these time-honored principles is unchanging."
— U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, August 7, 2019
Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo will travel to London, UK, from July 20-22, 2020. During his time in London, Secretary Pompeo will meet with Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab to discuss global priorities, including coordination on COVID-19 recovery and issues related to the People's Republic of China (PRC). He will also discuss the ongoing negotiations for a U.S.-UK Free Trade Agreement.
THE UNITED STATES AND THE UNITED KINGDOM HAVE LONG PARTNERED TO PROMOTE DEMOCRATIC VALUES AND MUTUAL PROSPERITY
- The United States has no closer partner than the United Kingdom. The strong relationship between our two countries reflects our common democratic ideals and values, which are reinforced through cooperation on political, security, and economic issues. We truly enjoy a "special relationship."
- Our partnership promotes mutual prosperity. S.-UK trade totals more than $300 billion a year. Eighty-six percent of British companies that export goods and services to the United States are small- and medium-sized enterprises. Nearly 20 percent of British exports go to the United States - more than twice as much as any other country.
- Our people enjoy a special bond, linked together by a common language and an enormous number of cultural, educational, and economic exchanges. Nearly four million Americans travel to the UK annually.
IT IS INSPIRATIONAL TO WITNESS THE COLLECTIVE SPIRIT OF THE AMERICAN AND BRITISH PEOPLE IN THE GLOBAL FIGHT AGAINST COVID-19.
- There can be no doubt about the impact COVID-19 has had on the world. But our countries have overcome tough challenges before, and together, we will do it again. This is a team effort, and American companies are in the vanguard of creating crucial solutions.
- In the early days of the pandemic, Google helped No. 10 deploy a critical message, "Stay Home, Protect the NHS, Save Lives," across all of its digital services, and helped NHS workers quickly triage COVID-19 patients using big data and artificial intelligence, undoubtedly saving lives. Amazon shipped more than 500,000 COVID-19 testing kits to NHS staff, many of which were developed by ThermoFisher, helping the UK quickly reach its testing goals. Microsoft transitioned 1.3 million NHS frontline healthcare workers to the cloud in just four days, one of the largest - and fastest - workforce digitization efforts in history.
THE UNITED STATES LOOKS FORWARD TO WORKING WITH THE UK GOVERNMENT ON THE EXCLUSION OF UNTRUSTED, HIGH-RISK VENDOR COMPONENTS FROM 5G NETWORKS
- We welcome news that the UK will prohibit new purchases of 5G equipment from Huawei and phase out existing Huawei equipment from its 5G telecommunications networks. The UK made this important decision to protect its national security interests, just as countries around the world are doing.
- Allowing untrusted, high-risk vendors, such as Huawei, into any part of 5G networks makes critical systems vulnerable to disruption, manipulation, and espionage, and puts sensitive government, commercial, and personal information at risk.
- We will continue to work with the UK on fostering a secure and vibrant 5G ecosystem, which is critical to Transatlantic prosperity and security.
THE UK IS A GLOBAL LEADER AND OUR CLOSE PARTNER IN PROMOTING AND PROTECTING HUMAN RIGHTS
- If the PRC wants to regain the trust of Hong Kongers and the international community, it should honor the promises it made to the Hong Kong people and to the United Kingdom in the U.N.-registered 1984 Sino-British Joint Declaration.
- We welcome the UK's recent decision to grant British Nationals Overseas the right to work and eventually apply for citizenship in the UK.
- The United States commends the UK's continued global leadership on the promotion and protection of human rights and the establishment of a Global Human Rights sanctions regime.
