Joe Biden announces first meeting with Rishi Sunak

Joe Biden plans to hold his first meeting with Rishi Sunak at the COP27 conference in Egypt, the State Department has confirmed, with Brexit likely to be high on the agenda. The US President is understood to be pleased Mr Sunak changed his mind over his original intention to not attend the summit.In the State Department briefing yesterday, spokeswoman Ned Price told independent US political journalist Ksenija Pavlovic McAteer that the President ‘looks forward to meeting with the Prime Minister in the coming days and continue with our close cooperation with the United Kingdom.’The meeting will be the first between the US President and British Prime Minister since Mr Sunak entered Downing Street last week.Mr Biden met Liz Truss in her 49-day Premiership when he attended the Queen’s state funeral – and then later at the United Nations General Assembly in New York.However, thee White House and Downing Street has experienced a strained relationship since President Biden took office because of his perceived antipathy towards Brexit following remarks relating to the Northern Ireland Protocol. Sunak and Biden are set to have their first meeting at COP27 (Image: GETTY)Mr Biden is understood to have had a poor relationship with Boris Johnson because of Brexit which put the so-called Special Relationship under strain.Issues which are set to arise when Mr Sunak and Mr Biden meet include the Northern Ireland protocol, where the Irish lobby in America has significant power over US policy.The two will also discuss the commitment to Ukraine and its attempts to resist the Russian invasion as well as the climate change agenda at COP27.Ms Truss had tried to ban the use of the phrase ‘Special Relationship’ between the UK and US because of the strained relations.She also told journalists that the UK/ US trade deal was now on the back burner.READ MORE: Civil war expert predicts ‘tipping point’ in US’s next armed conflict Relations between Boris Johnson and Joe Biden were strained (Image: GETTY)Mr Sunak has strong links to the US having been criticised for still having a green card to live and work there ahead of the summer leadership election.He also attended Stanford University business school in the US which he has said changed his life.There are hopes on both sides of the Atlantic that the change of Prime Minister and end of the Boris Johnson era will allow for a restart on the relationship between the UK and US.Recent polling by the Democracy Institute revealed that, despite scepticism over trade deals around the world, there is support for one with the UK.Currently, the UK is in the process of signing deals with 20 US states.DON’T MISSArizona Trump supporting group hit with restraining order [REVEAL]’Destructive’ Biden tries to blame everyone else for his failures’ [INSIGHT]’Republicans will take back control from Biden’ [REACTION]