The UK is viewed as America’s closest ally right across the U.S. political divide, a poll released this week shows.
Research by London-based agency Public First found both Donald Trump and Joe Biden supporters rated Britain as their closest friend – even beating out neighbouring Canada which was pushed down into second place.
The polling was commissioned for John Hulsman Enterprises. In it, Americans were given a choice of major world powers and asked to pick five that they considered the the U.S.’s “greatest allies.”
The UK was the country most often placed at the top of the list across parties, with 45 per cent listing the country as an ally.
And the figure was even higher among self-declared Republicans, at 48 per cent, and Democrats, at 50 per cent.
The result echoes previous claims by U.S. President Donald Trump that the UK-U.S. relationship remains the “greatest alliance world has ever known.”
It also confirms the warm personal relationship that is already obvious between Trump and UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
Trump Welcomes Prime Minister Boris Johnson: ‘He Will Be Great!’ https://t.co/T63tmFUPS3
— Breitbart London (@BreitbartLondon) July 23, 2019
During the G7 meetings in France last year, Trump hailed Johnson as “the right man” to lead Britain, remarking: “He needs no advice. He’s the right man for the job, I’ve been saying that for a long time.”
The news of the strength of the relationship comes as the UK approaches the finish line for drawn-out negotiations for its exit fom the trade block and will hearten those who see a U.S. trade deal as the next step in that process, something Americans are already anticipating as Breitbart London reported.
A poll conducted by the U.S.-based Emerson College last year found nearly two-thirds of Americans, 62 per cent, support a bilateral trade deal with the UK post-Brexit, in the second consecutive year the poll found strong support for improved trade between the two countries.
Areas where Americans hope to see better cooperation include security and defence, economic partnerships, improved diplomatic ties, and cultural exchanges.
I can’t say it enough – our BIGGEST Foreign Direct Investor is the United Kingdom and over 1.2m jobs in 🇺🇸 are connected to -owned firms! We already have a special relationship when it comes to investment – but there’s HUGE potential for further jobs + growth. https://t.co/E4w3Hu6yCL
— Ambassador Johnson (@USAmbUK) October 23, 2019
Another thing both parties also agreed on in the Public First research is that China is the U.S.’s biggest rival.
Some 44 percent of respondents viewed the Asian superpower in that way, with the figure for Republicans 48 percent and Democrats 47 percent.
Public First polled 2,004 US adults online, with the results weighted to represent the wider population.
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