Obama officials 'mocked Britain in secret and treated "special relationship" as a joke'
Bond 'was never something very important to the United States'
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.The so-called special relationship between the US and UK was regarded as a joke by Obama administration officials, a former government aide has said.
Jeremy Shapiro, who served as an adviser in the US state department under Barack Obama, said the relationship was "unrequited".
He told the Cheltenham Literature Festival that while officials publicly stressed the importance of the relationship, in private they mocked the idea, making jokes about the Falklands.
Mr Shapiro said he would insert references to the Malvinas – the Argentine name for the Falkland islands – into press conferences.
The Falkland Islands remain a disputed territory years after war broke out between Argentina and Britain in 1982. The violence resulted in the deaths of 655 Argentine and 255 British servicemen.
Mr Shapiro, who served as a senior adviser to the assistant secretary of state for European and Eurasian Affairs between 2009 and 2013, told an audience the US-UK bond "was never really something that was very important to the United States".
"From my perspective it was very important for us to mention the special relationship in every press conference that we had when the UK were here," he said
“But really we laughed about it behind the scenes. Typically, I would try and slip in a reference to the Malvinas or something to spoil it.”
He added: “It was a close relationship, a good relationship and a productive relationship.
“But it was the kind of relationship we would have with other countries.”
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments