Britain's US Ambassador Resigns Following Leak of Cables That Disparaged Trump

Britain's Ambassador to the United States, Kim Darroch, resigned his post Wednesday following the leak of confidential emails deriding the "dysfunctional" administration of President Donald Trump and a threat from the White House that it would no longer do business with him.
By Martin Baccardax ,

Britain's Ambassador to the United States, Sir Kim Darroch, resigned his post Wednesday following the leak of confidential emails deriding the "dysfunctional" administration of President Donald Trump and a threat from the White House that it would no longer do business with him.

Sir Kim, a career U.K. civil servant who has represented Britain in Washington since 2016, has been under fire since a weekend newspaper reported leaked diplomatic cables calling the Trump administration "clumsy and inept" and wondering if Trump could ever "look competent" in his role as Commander-in-Chief. Trump himself shot back, calling Sir Kim a "pompous fool" and lashing out at U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May, who stood by the embattled Ambassador, for the "disaster" she has made of the country's Brexit negotiations.

"Since the leak of official documents from this Embassy there has been a great deal of speculation surrounding my position and the duration of my remaining term as ambassador. I want to put an end to that speculation," Sir Kim said in a statement published by the U.K. Foreign Office. "The current situation is making it impossible for me to carry out my role as I would like."

"Although my posting is not due to end until the end of this year, I believe in the current circumstances the responsible course is to allow the appointment of a new ambassador," he added.

The diplomatic row comes at a crucial time for U.S.-U.K. relations, given that Britain is hoping to reach a near-term trade agreement with Washington in order to soften the economic blow it is expected to take from leaving the European Union later this year.

The U.K. Trade Secretary, Liam Fox, was scheduled to meet with U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross this week, but the sit-down was reportedly cancelled after Fox refused to apologize for Sir Kim's remarks, which were published in the Mail on Sunday newspaper after being leaked to a British journalist with close ties to pro-Brexit politicians, including Nigel Farage, whom Trump has said in the past would "do a great job" as Britain's U.S. Ambassador.

The Cabinet Office, the government's effective corporate headquarters, has said it will investigate the leak, which appears to have included documents that were written only a few weeks ago.

The row is also proving to play a central part in the ongoing race to replace May as U.K. Prime Minister later this summer. During a televised debate last night between the two main candidates, former London Mayor Boris Johnson -- whom Trump has spoken fondly of -- refused to back Sir Kim when asked if he would replace Britain's U.S. representative at the behest of officials in Washington. 

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