Dominic Raab says US election result ‘beyond reasonable doubt’

Dominic Raab today dismissed fears that Boris Johnson and Joe Biden will not get along as he said the US presidential election result is ‘beyond reasonable doubt’. 

The Foreign Secretary said he is ‘very confident’ there is a ‘huge bedrock of underlying interests and values that bind us very closely together’. 

And he insisted Mr Biden will have ‘no greater ally and no more dependable friend than the United Kingdom’. 

But Democratic sources and advisers have warned Mr Johnson could struggle to strike a strong relationship with Mr Biden because of past controversial comments he made about Barack Obama. 

Mr Raab rejected claims made in the US that Mr Johnson is not an ‘ally’ of Mr Biden as he said ‘you can always pick a snippet’ to paint a negative picture. 

He also became the first member of the UK Government to say that all votes should be counted in a democratic election after Donald Trump called for counting to be stopped. 

Number 10 repeatedly refused to be drawn on the issue on Friday as the Government tried to stay impartial over Mr Trump’s unsubstantiated claims of election fraud. 

It came after it was reported that Mr Johnson had joked with aides on Friday that Mr Biden is ‘one of the few world leaders I haven’t insulted’. 

Number 10 is now busy preparing for the first conversation between Mr Johnson and the President-elect.     

Mr Johnson yesterday congratulated Mr Biden after he was called as the winner in the crucial battleground states of Pennsylvania and Nevada, giving him an insurmountable lead over White House incumbent Donald Trump.   

The Prime Minister tweeted: ‘Congratulations to Joe Biden on his election as President of the United States and to Kamala Harris on her historic achievement.

‘The US is our most important ally and I look forward to working closely together on our shared priorities, from climate change to trade and security.’

Mr Johnson is said to have joked to aides on Friday: ‘Joe Biden is one of the few world leaders I haven’t insulted.’

The PM will be hoping to strike a close relationship with the new President and Number 10 wants to use the first phone call between the two men to lay the groundwork. 

It is thought Mr Johnson will emphasise the need for the two nations to work together to combat climate change ahead of the UK hosting a UN climate summit next year.  

But he could be in for a frosty reception from Mr Biden, with a Democratic source telling the Sunday Times: ‘They do not think Boris Johnson is an ally. 

‘They think Britain is an ally. But there will be no special relationship with Boris Johnson.’

Former vice president Mr Biden is said to still be angry at Mr Johnson over remarks he made in 2016 about Mr Obama. 

The then-Mayor of London had lashed out at Mr Obama for urging British voters to back staying in the EU and criticised the then-President for removing a bust of Sir Winston Churchill from the Oval Office. 

He suggested Mr Obama got rid of the statue because it was a ‘symbol of the part-Kenyan President’s ancestral dislike of the British empire’.

The comments prompted a furious backlash at the time and Mr Biden is said to still harbour resentment.  

The new Vice President, Kamala Harris, is also reportedly not a fan of Mr Johnson with a US politician who is likely to be given a role in the new administration recently telling friends: ‘If you think Joe hates him, you should hear Kamala.’ 

However, Tory former chancellor Sajid Javid today insisted Mr Johnson’s past comments and alliance with Mr Trump will not have any impact on the Special Relationship which he argued is ‘far bigger than personalities’.

He said the extent of the PM’s relationship with Mr Trump had been ‘completely overstated’ and the pair simply had a ‘good, strong working relationship’. 

Mr Javid told Sky News he believed Mr Johnson and Mr Biden will ‘hit it off straight away’.