U.K. to be Biden's first official foreign trip

G7, NATO SUMMITS

• Joe Biden announced Friday he would make Britain the venue for his first foreign trip as U.S. president, in what the White House said was an explicit signal of the strength of the Special Relationship.

Biden, 78, decided to attend the G7 summit in Cornwall in person, despite the pandemic, after weeks of deliberation.

Jen Psaki, his press secretary, said: “It certainly sends a message about the Special Relationship with the U.K. that this is his first trip.”

The president will be in the U.K. for the summit, which runs from June 11 to 13, although he could arrive earlier depending on whether he meets the Queen beforehand.

During the trip he will also hold a bilateral meeting with Boris Johnson, expected to be his first with another world leader on nonu.s. soil.

The news of the visit will be welcomed in Downing Street as a positive sign as Britain looks to push for a trade deal with the U.S.

Biden will travel on from the U.K. to Brussels for a NATO summit on June 14, and a U.S.-EU summit. However, he has no plans to visit Ireland, despite his Irish heritage, officials said.

White House officials said Biden's schedule was still open to “potential additional elements.”

That appeared to include the question of a meeting with the Queen, which has not yet been decided and is far from certain, The Telegraph understands.

In January, royal sources believed it “likely” that the Queen would meet Biden ahead of the summit.

But a reception, which was expected to take place at Windsor Castle, is now subject to change. Discussions are under way and it remains a “possibility,” it is understood. It is thought a potential meeting had previously been pencilled in for June 10, which would have been the Duke of Edinburgh's 100th birthday.

A pared-down Trooping the Colour is likely to take place on June 12, whilst G7 leaders are in Cornwall. Asked if Biden would like to meet the Queen, Psaki said: “Would he like to meet the Queen? Who wouldn't want to meet the Queen?

“We're still finalizing what the details are of the trip ... and we will have more to share as the final details are put together.”

The “potential additional elements” of Biden's trip could also include a summit with Vladimir Putin, the Russian president. Biden has proposed meeting Putin in a “third country” amid growing tensions, and talks between the White House and the Kremlin are under way.

Psaki said Biden's decision to visit did not mean an opening up of mass travel between the two countries.