Cameron holds talk with Bush

report made on 30 Nov 2007

A long-lasting feud between the Conservative Party and the US government seems to have come to an end. David Cameron held a private meeting with George Bush today in the White House.

It is the first time in five years that a leader of the Conservative Party has met the US President, or even set foot in Washington.

A feud erupted between the Tories and the White House three years ago when Michael Howard irritated President Bush after he called for Tony Blair to resign over Iraq's missing weapons of mass destruction.

Mr Bush and Mr Cameron discussed areas including Iran, Afghanistan, free trade and climate change, which were described as "issues that Britain and America really need to work together on" by the Tory leader.

The length of the meeting turned out to be somewhat mysterious. Despite the Tories repeatedly insisted that the discussion had been "just under 30 minutes", a senior American source declared that it had been "more like 15 to 20 minutes".

David Cameron took advantage of his current trip to boost his credentials as an international statesman.

In a speech afterwards, Mr Cameron called for a stronger military presence in the Balkans to prevent future trouble.

He also accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of being "less than helpful" by backing Serbia, who is firmly opposed to independence of Kosovo.