Prime Minister Boris Johnson and US President Joe Biden met in-person for on June 10 in Cornwall ahead of the UK’s G7 Summit, which begins on today (June 11).
The leaders have agreed a new ‘Atlantic Charter’, modelled on the historic joint statement made by Prime Minister Winston Churchill and President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1941 setting out their goals for the post-war world. The original Atlantic Charter included landmark agreements to promote democracy, free trade and increased opportunity for all.
The 2021 Atlantic Charter will recognise that, while the world is a very different place to 1941, the values the UK and US share remain the same.
The new Atlantic Charter will outline eight areas where the Prime Minister and President Biden resolve to work together for the benefit of humanity. It will also recognise more recent challenges, such as dealing with the threat posed by cyber attacks, acting urgently on climate change and to protect biodiversity and supporting the world to bring an end to, and recover from, the coronavirus pandemic.
The principled commitments made in the new Atlantic Charter include a commitment to working to open up travel between the UK and US as soon as possible through a new travel working group which will make recommendations on safely reopening international travel.
The working group will work to explore options for resuming up UK-US travel and ensure that the UK and US closely share thinking and expertise on international travel policy going forward.