This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It will not be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/uk_politics/6899222.stm

The article has changed 9 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 5 Version 6
Miliband defends UK-US relations Miliband defends UK-US relations
(10 minutes later)
Foreign Secretary David Miliband has insisted that the US will continue to be the UK's "single most important bilateral partner in the world".Foreign Secretary David Miliband has insisted that the US will continue to be the UK's "single most important bilateral partner in the world".
His assertion comes after comments from two other ministers seemed to hint at cooler relations with the US.His assertion comes after comments from two other ministers seemed to hint at cooler relations with the US.
"Our commitment to work with the American government in general, and the Bush administration in particular, is resolute," Mr Miliband told the BBC."Our commitment to work with the American government in general, and the Bush administration in particular, is resolute," Mr Miliband told the BBC.
He said issues like climate change could only be tackled with the US.He said issues like climate change could only be tackled with the US.
His statement came after new Foreign Office minister Lord Malloch Brown claimed the UK and the US would no longer be "joined at the hip" on foreign policy.His statement came after new Foreign Office minister Lord Malloch Brown claimed the UK and the US would no longer be "joined at the hip" on foreign policy.
He told the Daily Telegraph it was time for a more "impartial" foreign policy and to build relationships with European leaders. And International Development Secretary Douglas Alexander warned in a speech against unilateralism and called for an "internationalist approach" to global problems.
Special relationship 'Different challenges'
Some analysts considered those remarks as evidence of Labour distancing itself from the US - and the close personal ties between former Prime Minister Tony Blair and US President George W Bush.Some analysts considered those remarks as evidence of Labour distancing itself from the US - and the close personal ties between former Prime Minister Tony Blair and US President George W Bush.
But Mr Miliband rebuffed those claims, saying: "We have a strong new leader in the United Kingdom, he is going to be a valued partner with the United States.But Mr Miliband rebuffed those claims, saying: "We have a strong new leader in the United Kingdom, he is going to be a valued partner with the United States.
You need to build coalitions that are lateral, which go beyond the bilateral blinkers of the normal partners Lord Malloch BrownYou need to build coalitions that are lateral, which go beyond the bilateral blinkers of the normal partners Lord Malloch Brown
"He is going to work very closely with President Bush. That is the right thing to do.""He is going to work very closely with President Bush. That is the right thing to do."
Mr Miliband said Lord Malloch Brown was reflecting on the past and saying that Britain faced a "different set of challenges than we did 10 years ago". Mr Miliband said Lord Malloch Brown had been reflecting on the past and saying that Britain faced a "different set of challenges than we did 10 years ago".
A strategy paper published last year by the government under Mr Blair stated that the US was the UK's single most important bilateral partner in the world, alongside its multilateral partnerships with bodies such as the UN.A strategy paper published last year by the government under Mr Blair stated that the US was the UK's single most important bilateral partner in the world, alongside its multilateral partnerships with bodies such as the UN.
Mr Miliband said nothing had changed, and that the UK and US had a "shared history and shared values".Mr Miliband said nothing had changed, and that the UK and US had a "shared history and shared values".
"We want to be serious players who make a difference in the world - and you do that with the United States, not against them." "We want to be serious players who make a difference in the world - and you do that with the United States, not against them," he told BBC One's Sunday AM programme.
His efforts to reassure Washington of Mr Brown's commitment to the so-called special relationship closely follow a denial from Downing Street that another minister had criticised the US.
International Development Secretary Douglas Alexander warned in a speech against unilateralism and called for an "internationalist approach" to global problems.
Lord Malloch Brown's newspaper interview was his first since being appointed Foreign Office minister.
He used to be deputy secretary general at the United Nations and is a known critic of the Iraq war.
Lord Malloch Brown wants a more impartial foreign policy
"It is very unlikely that the Brown-Bush relationship is going to go through the baptism of fire and therefore be joined together at the hip like the Blair-Bush relationship was," he was reported as saying.
"That was a relationship born of being war leaders together.
"There was an emotional intensity of being war leaders with much of the world against them. That is enough to put you on your knees and get you praying together."
He went on to speak of forging new links with French President Nicolas Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angela Merkel, as well as with leaders in India and China.
"You need to build coalitions that are lateral, which go beyond the bilateral blinkers of the normal partners," he added.
"My hope is that foreign policy will become much more impartial."
'Get a grip''Get a grip'
His remarks came the day after Mr Alexander was accused of "coded criticism" of the policies of President George W Bush in a speech he made in the US. Meanwhile, former Liberal Democrat leader Lord Ashdown said the UK should use the relationship with the US to Britain's advantage.
When asked if his comments amounted to criticising the US, Gordon Brown's spokesman said that view "was not shared" by the PM. Speaking of operations in Iraq, he said: "We have real autonomy - in fact I suspect one of Mr Blair's mistakes was he did not use the leverage he had to influence American policy."
Mr Brown, himself, told BBC Radio Five Live that he would continue to work, as Tony Blair did, "very closely with the American administration". Earlier in the week, Gordon Brown told BBC Radio Five Live that he would continue to work, as Tony Blair did, "very closely with the American administration".
Meanwhile, Liberal Democrat leader Sir Menzies Campbell has called on Mr Brown to "get a grip".Meanwhile, Liberal Democrat leader Sir Menzies Campbell has called on Mr Brown to "get a grip".
"What is at issue is not the relationship with the US but the nature of that relationship," he said."What is at issue is not the relationship with the US but the nature of that relationship," he said.
"Under Tony Blair the relationship was so subordinate as to appear subservient. Britain needs to be America's candid friend not its client.""Under Tony Blair the relationship was so subordinate as to appear subservient. Britain needs to be America's candid friend not its client."