UK Foreign Secretary David Cameron met Donald Trump on Monday, British officials said, ahead of talks with senior members of President Joe Biden’s administration on the wars in Gaza and Ukraine.
Cameron sat down with the former US president and Republican challenger to Biden in November’s closely watched election, one month after the two Americans became their parties’ presumptive White House nominees.
“Ahead of his visit to Washington, the Foreign Secretary met former president Trump in Florida,” said a UK Foreign Office spokesman on Tuesday. “It is standard practice for ministers to meet with opposition candidates as part of their routine international engagement,” he added.
Cameron is in Washington for discussions on Tuesday with Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
While British officials were not drawn on the substance of the Trump talks, the Foreign Office said Cameron would push, in his meeting with Blinken, for a “full, urgent, and transparent investigation” into Israeli air strikes that killed seven aid workers in Gaza last week.
The UK government has faced calls to suspend arms export licences to Israel after three Britons working for US-based food charity World Central Kitchen were killed in the attack.
More than 600 lawyers, including former Supreme Court judges, warned in a letter that London risked breaching international law by continuing to allow the export of weapons to Israel.
The foreign secretary is expected to discuss arms exports during a joint press conference with Blinken at 11:30 am (15:30 GMT) but will not announce a change of policy, according to UK government sources.
“He will underline that the deaths of World Central Kitchen humanitarian workers are completely unacceptable and that major changes need to be made to ensure the safety of aid workers on the ground,” the Foreign Office said.
Talks between Cameron and Blinken will also focus on “the path to a sustainable ceasefire and the delivery of greater quantities of humanitarian aid in Gaza”, it added.
Cameron will also urge US Congress leaders to approve a proposed $60-billion military aid package for Ukraine that Republican lawmakers have been blocking for months.
Over $184 billion (£145 billion) has already been committed to Ukraine by European nations, including over $15 billion from the UK.
The US has committed nearly $74 billion.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky warned on Sunday that Ukraine will lose its war with Russia if Congress does not approve the stalled package.
Cameron said ahead of his visit that “success for Ukraine and failure for Putin are vital for American and European security”.