Gulf oil spill: PM's call with President Obama
Prime Minister David Cameron has spoken to President Obama to discuss the ongoing measures to deal with the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico
The PM expressed his sadness at the ongoing human and environmental damage the spill is causing.
During the 30 minute phone call they also discussed Afghanistan, Iran and the upcoming summit of G20 nations in Canada.
Following the phone call, the Prime Minister’s spokesperson said:
The Prime Minister and President spoke for over 30 minutes today.
They discussed Afghanistan, where the Prime Minister briefed the President on his visit. On Iran, they agreed on the need for the European Council to signal tough measures in support of this week’s clear message to the Iranian regime from New York that it must halt its military nuclear programme.
They also discussed preparations for the G20, where the US and UK are also working together closely.
The Prime Minister expressed his sadness at the ongoing human and environmental catastrophe in Louisiana. The President and Prime Minister agreed that BP should continue - as they have pledged - to work intensively to ensure that all sensible and reasonable steps are taken as rapidly as practicable to deal with the consequences of this catastrophe.
President Obama said to the Prime Minister that his unequivocal view was that BP was a multinational global company and that frustrations about the oil spill had nothing to do with national identity.The Prime Minister stressed the economic importance of BP to the UK, US and other countries. The President made clear that he had no interest in undermining BP’s value.
The President and Prime Minister reaffirmed their confidence in the unique strength of the US-UK relationship.
They also agreed that Mr Cameron will visit the US for the first time as Prime Minister on 20 July.