G7 summit — live: Johnson says Biden ‘a breath of fresh air’ as president touts US vaccine ‘arsenal’

Boris Johnson has described dealing with Joe Biden as a “breath of fresh air” after the pair met face-to-face for the first time in Cornwall ahead of the G7 summit.

Attempting to play down ongoing tensions with the US and EU over Brexit, the prime minister insisted there was “absolutely common ground” in terms of maintaining peace in Northern Ireland by upholding the Good Friday/Belfast Agreement.

At a press conference following the talks, Mr Biden said he had a “very productive meeting” with Mr Johnson and the two men had “reaffirmed the special relationship”.

Earlier, a senior US official said Mr Biden had not come to the UK to lecture Mr Johnson about Brexit’s Northern Ireland protocol and is not looking to be confrontational or adversarial.

“He didn’t come here to give a lecture,” the official, who was unnamed in quotes given to Reuters, said. “He came here to communicate what he believes very, very deeply about peace in Northern Ireland.”

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