Joe Biden tried to quash his ‘anti-British’ reputation today as he arrived at No10 with the Union Jack mounted on his official limo.
The flag was clearly visible on the US president’s ‘Beast’ as it pulled into Downing Street – in stark contrast to its absence when he visited Northern Ireland earlier this year.
Mr Biden walked up to the steps of the famous building and was greeted with a warm handshake by Rishi Sunak.
The discussions are taking place on the eve of a crunch Nato summit in Lithuania. But frustration is mounting that although it will be their fifth meeting in as many months, Mr Biden is largely ignoring the UK’s views.
More flashpoints have emerged over recent days, with Mr Biden pouring cold water on the idea of Ukraine joining Nato anytime soon.
He has also put Mr Sunak in an awkward position by declaring the US will supply Kyiv with cluster bombs – weapons the UK is committed to shunning.
And the pair could have tricky exchanges over the next head of Nato, after Mr Biden seemingly blocked the ambitions of Defence Secretary Ben Wallace and backed the EU’s Ursula von der Leyen for the top job.
Tory MP David Jones told MailOnline engagement was useless if there was no ‘positive response’. ‘The PM should remind him which country is America’s strongest ally,’ he added.
Joe Biden walked up to the steps of the famous building and was greeted with a warm handshake by Rishi Sunak
The Union Jack was clearly visible on the US president’s ‘Beast’ as it pulled into Downing Street – in stark contrast to its absence when he visited Northern Ireland earlier this year
Mr Biden is said to be pushing for the current European Commission president to take charge of the military alliance.
But MPs complained that he is ‘being a d***’, after apparently being angered by Britain failing to get his approval to train Ukrainian pilots for F-16 fighter jets.
Conservatives have warned that Ms von der Leyen was the ‘worst ever’ German defence minister before becoming commission president. On her watch Berlin’s troops notoriously trained with broomsticks on Nato exercises because they did not have enough rifles.
Mr Biden told CNN in an interview broadcast as he set off on his journey that Ukraine was not ‘ready for membership’ in NATO.
‘I don’t think there is unanimity in NATO about whether or not to bring Ukraine into the NATO family now, at this moment, in the middle of a war,’ he said.
He noted that NATO members are committed every inch of each other’s territory, while war is raging inside Ukraine.
‘If the war is going on, then we’re all in war,’ he said.
His tone appeared far more downbeat than the UK, which has urged a positive message on the prospects for Ukraine joining Nato.
Tory former leader Iain Duncan Smith told the Telegraph: ‘In these circumstances with Ukraine facing literally a life-and-death struggle with Russia, it would be better to give them some positive sense that membership will become a reality at some point rather than emphasising the negative that they are not ready.’
Mr Biden said he took the ‘very difficult decision’ to supply cluster bombs because Kyiv’s forces are running out of ammunition in their fightback against the Russian invasion.
But the PM spoke out to underline that the UK is a signatory to a convention which prohibits the production or use of the weapons, which scatter large numbers of tiny explosives from a rocket or artillery shell.
Yesterday Treasury minister Victoria Atkins insisted in an interview on Sky News: ‘We’re very pleased that President Biden is coming this week. It’s going to be the fifth time that the Prime Minister [and] the President have met in the last five months. And so the relationship is the special relationship is still very much strong and secure.’
But she went on: ‘In relation to cluster bombs, we, the UK, have signed the convention that prohibits their use and discourages their use. And of course we stick by that convention and we are trying to do what we can to support Ukraine.’
The Beast featured the Stars and Stripes and the presidential standard on its bonnet on his brief visit to Northern Ireland in April
After Mr Biden – who often boasts about his Irish heritage – moved on to the Republic the country’s flag was proudly on display
Former National Security Adviser Lord Ricketts said other western nations were also ‘very uncomfortable’ with the US’s stance on cluster bombs.
He told Sky News: ‘We’ve, all of us, apart from the Americans, signed up to the convention, which means we don’t produce or stockpile or use these weapons. I mean, they are indiscriminate weapons, of course.’ He admitted Ukraine hasn’t had the precision munitions or fighter aircraft it has asked for from the West, and sees cluster bombs as a ‘potential game-changer’ in its counter-offensive against President Putin’s army.
‘This admittedly horrible weapon is designed to use against dug-in entrenched forces. And as I say, if they can’t break through in this fight, which is going on in their territory, this is weapons for use on their territory, then the risk is it will continue.
‘So it’s a hard choice for the kind that the countries have to make in wartime. I’m uncomfortable with it. Yes, I wish it wasn’t being done, but I think we can understand why they’re doing it.’