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Rishi Sunak plans to meet Biden in G20 summit
The leaders discussed the extent of UK-US cooperation, both bilaterally and in regions such as the Indo-Pacific where the AUKUS pact forms part of efforts to counter China's malign influence, the spokesperson said in a statement on Tuesday.
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Britain's Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. (AFP/Ben Stansall)
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak spoke with US President Joe Biden on Tuesday evening and they are set to meet in person at the upcoming G20 Summit inIndonesia, a Downing Street spokesperson said.
The leaders discussed the extent of UK-US cooperation, both bilaterally and in regions such as the Indo-Pacific where the AUKUS pact forms part of efforts to counter China's malign influence, the spokesperson said in a statement on Tuesday.
Biden told Sunak -- Britain's third leader in two months -- that "the UK remains America's closest ally", in a phone call on Tuesday, Downing Street said.
Sunak and Biden also agreed on the need to ensure the people of Northern Ireland have security through preserving the Belfast (Good Friday) Agreement, the statement added.
Meanwhile, Northern Ireland on Wednesday appeared headed for a second election this year, after UK government efforts to resolve months of political stalemate over its post-Brexit status failed to secure a breakthrough.
Chris Heaton-Harris, Britain's Northern Ireland minister, has been holding talks with the political parties in a fresh bid to get them to form a new executive.
If no agreement is reached by Friday, London will be legally required to call early elections for the devolved assembly in the volatile province.
It has been without a functioning government since February, after the pro-UK Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) collapsed the executive over its staunch opposition to post-Brexit trade rules there.
It wants the so-called Northern Ireland Protocol agreed by London and Brussels as part of Britain's 2019 Brexit deal overhauled or scrapped entirely. They say it weakens the province's place within the UK.
Many unionists also argue the pact is threatening the delicate balance of peace between the pro-Irish nationalist community and those in favour of continued union with the UK.
