Boris Johnson is to step up efforts to secure the extradition of an American diplomat to face charges over the death of teenage motorcyclist Harry Dunn when US secretary of state Mike Pompeo visits London later this week, Downing Street has said.
Mr Johnson raised the case of Anne Sacoolas with Donald Trump in a phone call on Friday, telling the US president of “the need for the individual involved to return to the UK”.
Mr Pompeo last week ruled out the extradition of the intelligence officer’s wife on the grounds that she held diplomatic immunity at the time of the car crash which killed 19-year-old Harry in Northamptonshire last August.
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He arrives in London on Wednesday for talks with Mr Johnson and foreign secretary Dominic Raab which are likely to be overshadowed not only by the Dunn case, but also by transatlantic differences over the involvement of Chinese tech giant Huawei in the development of the UK’s 5G telecoms network.
Mr Johnson’s official spokesman confirmed that the PM and Mr Raab would be pressing Pompeo to reverse his decision on extradition.
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2/50 25 January 2020A couple walks along the Basingstoke canal near to Dogmersfield in Hampshire
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3/50 24 January 2020Boris Johnson gestures as he watches a performance during celebrations for Chinese Lunar New Year at Downing Street in London
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50/50 8 December 2019Labour party leader Jeremy Corbyn poses for selfies with supporters at a general election rally in Colwyn Bay, north Wales
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1/50 26 January 2020Performers taking part in a parade involving costumes, lion dances and floats, during Chinese New Year celebrations in central London, which marks the Year of the Rat
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2/50 25 January 2020A couple walks along the Basingstoke canal near to Dogmersfield in Hampshire
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3/50 24 January 2020Boris Johnson gestures as he watches a performance during celebrations for Chinese Lunar New Year at Downing Street in London
Reuters
4/50 23 January 2020Gabriella Zaghari-Ratcliffe stands next to her father Richard Ratcliffe, the husband of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe and his mother Barbara, as they address the media in Downing Street following a meeting with Prime Minister Boris Johnson
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5/50 22 January 2020Rosa Connolly takes a close look during a preview of the Tyrannosaurs exhibition at the National Museum of Scotland, Edinburgh
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6/50 21 January 2020The sun sets behind tower cranes and the London skyline in the city financial district
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7/50 20 January 2020Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, speaks with Prime Minister Boris Johnson as they attend the UK-Africa Investment Summit at the Intercontinental Hotel in London. Johnson is hosting African leaders and senior government representatives along with British and African businesses during the UK-Africa Investment Summit, aimed at strengthening the UKs economic partnership with African nations
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8/50 19 January 2020Joe Root celebrates with his England team mates after taking the wicket of Rassie van der Dussen during day four of the third Test against South Africa in Port Elizabeth. He took a career-best four wickets during the day’s play, which saw the home side follow on in their second innings. They trail England by 188 runs going into day five
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EPA
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14/50 13 January 2020Puppeteers from Vision Mechanic rehearsing with Scotland’s largest puppet, a ten-metre tall sea goddess called Storm, in the grounds of the Museum of Flight, East Lothian. Made entirely from recycled materials, it was unveiled ahead of its debut at the Celtic Connections Costal Day celebrations in Glasgow this weekend
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18/50 9 January 2020Rawson Robinson, from Nenthead, on the Cumbria and Northumberland border clears snow from the model village he has built in his garden
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20/50 7 January 2020England’s Stuart Broad celebrates with teammate Ben Stokes after the dismissal of South Africa’s Rassie van der Dussen during the fifth day of the second Test cricket match in Cape Town. Stokes claimed the last three wickets in the space of 14 deliveries to wrap up a 189-run win
AFP via Getty
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28/50 30 December 2019Deer graze in the morning mist as cyclists ride by in Richmond Park, London
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30/50 28 December 2019The Harlequins players arrive at the stadium prior to the Gallagher Premiership Rugby Big Game 12 match between Harlequins and Leicester Tigers at Twickenahm Stadium
Getty Images for Harlequins
31/50 27 December 2019A car drives through floodwater near Harbridge, north of Ringwood in Hampshire, after the river Avon burst its banks
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32/50 26 December 2019Participants in the Old Surrey and West Kent Boxing Day Hunt in Chiddingstone. Hunting with horses and hounds is a Boxing Day tradition. Since the fox hunting ban in 2004, modified hunts take place using scented trails for the animals to follow
EPA
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35/50 23 December 2019Reggie the dog is rescued with a boat from flooding at the Little Venice Country Park and Marina in Maidstone
AFP via Getty
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AFP via Getty
40/50 18 December 2019Luke Jerram’s art installation ‘Gaia’, a replica of planet earth created using detailed Nasa imagery of the Earth’s surface, hangs on display at the Eden Project in St Austell, Cornwall
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41/50 17 December 2019A surfer gets into the festive spirit at the inland surfing lagoon at The Wave, near Bristol
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42/50 16 December 2019Snowy conditions near Deepdale in the Yorkshire Dales National Park as snow hits parts of the UK
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43/50 15 December 2019Oisin Carson, 5, picks a Christmas tree at Wicklow Way Christmas tree farm in Roundwood
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44/50 14 December 2019First Minister, Nicola Sturgeon, takes a selfie as she joins the SNPs newly elected MPs for a group photo outside the V&A Museum in Dundee, Scotland
Getty Images
45/50 13 December 2019Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Carrie Symonds arrive back at Downing Street after the results for the general election were announced. The Conservative Party won with an overall majority
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46/50 12 December 2019A dog outside a polling station during the general election in Northumberland
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47/50 11 December 2019Liberal Democrat leader Jo Swinson stands between a Stop Brexit sign as she attends a general election campaign event at Esher Rugby Club, south west London. Britain will go to the polls tomorrow to vote
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48/50 10 December 2019A surfer off the North East coast at Tynemouth
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49/50 9 December 2019Leah Rossiter (left) and Ceara Carney, dressed as mermaids, join members of the Irish Wildlife Trust and Extinction Rebellion Ireland protesting outside Leinster House in Dublin, against overfishing in Irish Waters
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50/50 8 December 2019Labour party leader Jeremy Corbyn poses for selfies with supporters at a general election rally in Colwyn Bay, north Wales
AFP via Getty
The spokesman told a Westminster briefing: “We believe that this is a denial of justice and it is important that the individual involved returns to the UK.”
Ms Sacoolas was charged with causing death by dangerous driving following the crash outside RAF Croughton. She left the UK shortly after the incident, claiming diplomatic immunity.
Mr Raab is expected to meet the Dunn family on Monday afternoon.
The PM’s spokesman said: “The foreign secretary and prime minister have made it clear to their US counterparts in recent days that we want justice for Harry’s family at that we do believe that the individual involved should return to the UK.
“We set out on Friday that we were urgently looking at all of our options. That work is ongoing. I would expect us to continue to make the point later this week, when Mike Pompeo visits, of the importance of the individual involved returning to the UK.”
Source: UK Politics - www.independent.co.uk