UK amb. to US sparks diplomatic firestorm with comments on Israel and Epstein scandal
"These were private, informal comments made to a group of UK sixth-form students," an FCDO spokesperson said. "They are certainly not any reflection of the UK Government's position."
Britain’s diplomatic relations with the United States have been plunged into a state of high tension following the leak of outspoken remarks by Sir Christian Turner, the UK’s ambassador to Washington.
In a recorded session shared with the Financial Times, Turner suggested that the only true "special relationship" held by the US is with Israel, while simultaneously criticizing the American legal system’s failure to hold figures associated with Jeffrey Epstein to account.
The disclosure comes at an exceptionally sensitive moment, coinciding with King Charles III’s four-day state visit to the U.S. and just hours before his scheduled address to Congress on Tuesday afternoon.
During a mid-February Q&A session with British students visiting Washington, Sir Christian expressed a distinct dislike for the term "special relationship" when applied to Anglo-American ties, describing it as "nostalgic" and "backwards-looking."
"I think there is probably one country that has a special relationship with the United States — and that is probably Israel," Turner stated. While he acknowledged that defense and security ties between London and Washington remain "intertwined," he urged Britain and Europe to "work to redefine" their relationship and move away from total reliance on the US security umbrella.
The ambassador’s most stinging remarks targeted the disparate fallout from the Jeffrey Epstein scandal on either side of the Atlantic. Turner described it as “extraordinary” that while the scandal had “brought down” senior British figures—including Prince Andrew, former Ambassador Lord Peter Mandelson, and had even pressured Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer—it appeared to have “touched nobody” within the American political or social elite.
He noted that the British system’s level of accountability stood in stark contrast to the U.S., where associates of the convicted sex offender have largely avoided public or professional ruin.
Turner’s comments also touched on the internal stability of the British government. He suggested that Prime Minister Keir Starmer had been "on the ropes" earlier this year due to the Mandelson appointment and speculated that the Labour Party could "remove" him following the local elections in May.
The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) moved quickly to contain the damage, issuing a statement emphasizing that the remarks were "private" and "informal."
"These were private, informal comments made to a group of UK sixth-form students," an FCDO spokesperson said. "They are certainly not any reflection of the UK Government's position."
The leak adds a layer of diplomatic awkwardness to the Royal visit, as King Charles and Queen Camilla have already faced pressure from campaigners and U.S. Congressman Ro Khanna to meet with Epstein’s victims during their time in New York and Washington—a request the palace has so far resisted.