Sir Keir Starmer waded into the row about Joe Biden’s health by declaring that the ageing US President is not senile and was “on good form” during their first meeting.
Mr Biden has come under mounting pressure not to stand for re-election this year amid growing concerns he is too old and is suffering from mental decline.
Those fears soared after Mr Biden’s faltering presidential debate performance against Republican opponent Donald Trump, during which the incumbent made several gaffes and appeared to be confused.
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But in an interview after meeting Mr Biden in the White House, Sir Keir said his American counterpart was “on really good form”.
Asked whether the US President was senile, the newly elected PM said “no” and that Mr Biden was “across all the detail”.
Sir Keir added that they had “gone at pace through a number of the issues” and “covered a lot of ground – strategic ground, international stuff, not just Ukraine”.
Mr Biden’s woes have continued this week, with top Democratic fundraiser George Clooney writing a letter calling for the US President to step aside.
However, Mr Biden has firmly said he intends to continue and believes he has the best chance of defeating Mr Trump in November’s presidential election.
Meanwhile, during their Oval Office meeting, Mr Biden called on Sir Keir to bring Britain “closer” to Europe again.
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