LONDON - British Prime Minister Gordon Brown headed to the U.S. for a four-day visit with an optimistic message claiming that coordinated efforts to shore up the world economy can reinforce ties between Europe and Washington that were frayed by the Iraq war.The British leader, who arrives in the U.S. late Tuesday with his wife, Sarah, for his second visit there since replacing Tony Blair last June, is seeking to rekindle ties with Washington. He offered praise for all three prospective presidential candidates before his visit, but specifically backed U.S. Sen. Hillary Rodham ClintonÂ’s plans on the economy.
After a first meeting with U.S. President George W. Bush in July, Brown said he hopes he can help strengthen U.S. and Europe ties, aiming to lead work on tackling spiraling food and fuel prices, reform global institutions and combat climate change. "I feel I can bring Europe and America closer together for the future,” Brown said, in an interview with CBS News broadcast on Tuesday. That will be to the advantage of all of us, to deal with economic problems, climate change and help make for a more peaceful world in the future. I see huge opportunities in the next few years for Europe and America to work more closely together.”
The men will hold White House talks, and a Rose Garden news conference, on Thursday, with the British leader eager to underline his enthusiasm for the U.S.
"I’m very pro-American, and I’ve always been so,” Brown told CBS. Ours is a very special relationship. I feel that America and Britain can achieve so much in the next few years.”
Brown hopes to meet with John McCain, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, and Democratic party rivals Barack Obama and Clinton in Washington on Thursday. He praised McCain and Obama in his CBS News interview, but acknowledged he is a longtime ally of Clinton, saying she has made strong arguments on how to deal with the economic downturn.
The prime minister said he will use his visit to warn against protectionism in the U.S. and call anew for international-level supervision of the financial markets. But Brown said he is optimistic about the long-term financial prospects for both Britain and the U.S.
"We’ll continue to lead the way, if we have confidence in our ability to create the next set of inventions, the new innovations of the future,” Brown said. I’m positive about the future. The world economy will grow a lot in the next 10 years, and America and Britain can have a very big lion’s share of that new wealth.”