Ed Miliband managed to escape a dressing down by Marco Rubio on Wednesday over his past remarks about Donald Trump.
The new Foreign Secretary visited Washington DC for the first time in his new role for talks with the Secretary of State – and revealed his comments about the President “didn’t come up”.
Mr Miliband had earlier ignored questions about whether he still thought Mr Trump was an “idiot, a racist and a misogynist” as he shook hands with Mr Rubio.
He simply said he was looking forward to the pair’s meeting.
Then, after the duo emerged from talks, they faced reporters again.
Mr Miliband was asked for the second time whether his remarks had resurfaced, and whether they had harmed UK-US relations.
He has also in the past claimed Mr Trump had a “peculiar” relationship with Russia and “authoritarian tendencies”, and labelled him a “self-confessed groper”.
“No, and in fact they didn’t come up today,” the Foreign Secretary answered.
He continuned: “We had a very productive 90-minute conversation, in which we talked about, yes, about Iran, but about how we can stand shoulder to shoulder with Ukraine against Russian aggression, about how we can work towards relieving the terrible suffering we’re seeing in Gaza, and a two-state solution for security of the Israeli and Palestinian people.
The new Foreign Secretary visited Washington DC for the first time in his new role for talks with the Secretary of State
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FOREIGN OFFICE
“And we talked about a range of other issues.”
The Foreign Secretary went on to hail America as “our closest ally” – words which were not mirrored in Mr Rubio’s version of events.
The Secretary of State made no reference to the “special relationship”, and instead gave a straight readout of the topics covered in the discussions.
“In my meeting with UK Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband, we discussed the need for Europe to take a greater role in its own security,” he said.
“We also reaffirmed our shared commitment to open transit in the Strait of Hormuz and ensuring Iran never obtains a nuclear weapon.”
Ed Miliband hailed America as ‘our closest ally’ – but Marco Rubio made no mention of the ‘special relationship’
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FOREIGN OFFICE
Mr Miliband’s appointment by Andy Burnham last month had initially raised eyebrows in DC – mainly over his outspoken Net Zero stance.
Sources in the States had suggested his new job had sparked “genuine anger” in the Trump administration and could even become a “point of friction” across the Atlantic.
Steve Bannon, the President’s former chief strategist and a close ally, told The Telegraph that DC had taken “the extraordinary step” of cautioning Mr Burnham against appointing “this twit”.
But the US Ambassador to London, Warren Stephens, played down the row, suggesting Mr Miliband’s views on the President had probably shifted since 2016.
“People’s view of President Trump in 2016 is probably a lot different than it is in… 2026,” he said, adding: “He was wrong then.”
Mr Miliband defended his position on Iran after the meeting with Mr Rubio after earlier campaigning against the US using British bases
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GETTYFears had also been raised that his opposition to US strikes on Iran could pose problems in meetings with his new American counterpart.
The then-Energy Secretary was said to have been one of the most vocal critics of letting the Americans using British bases to launch attacks on the Islamic Republic.
And while the UK still lets the US use its bases for “defensive” strikes, Labour’s unease over being drawn into the conflict caused a rift with Mr Trump which appeared to leave a permanent dent in his relationship with Sir Keir Starmer.
Mr Miliband defended his position on Iran after the meeting with Mr Rubio, warning Tehran not to “escalate the conflict” after recent threats against British bases.
“We did not join offensive action in this war,” the Foreign Secretary insisted.
“We’ve allowed our bases to be used for defence by our allies, our Gulf allies, and that’s absolutely the right thing to do.”