UK foreign secretary says US president has ‘penetrated corners of the global consciousness’ more than his predecessors

This article is more than 2 years old

This article is more than 2 years old

Boris Johnson has described Donald Trump as “one of the great huge global brands” and said he was penetrating corners of the world’s consciousness that few other presidents have managed to reach.



The UK foreign secretary’s praise on the US cable show Fox and Friends came as he may find himself hauled in front of a parliamentary committee for failing to correct remarks in which he suggested a jailed British dual Iranian national may have been training journalists in Iran, leaving her open to further charges.

Quick guide Boris Johnson's errors of judgment Show Hide Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe Boris Johnson said that the British-Iranian citizen Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, convicted of spying in Iran, was “simply teaching people journalism” – a statement her family and her employer both said was untrue. His comments were subsequently cited as proof that she was engaged in “propaganda against the regime”. 'Dead bodies' After Johnson suggested that the Libyan city of Sirte might become a new Dubai once “the dead bodies” were removed, Downing Street said it was not “an appropriate choice of words”. Myanmar The foreign secretary was accused of “incredible insensitivity” after it emerged he recited part of a colonial-era Rudyard Kipling poem in front of local dignitaries while on an official visit to Myanmar. Whisky sour Johnson apologised after causing a “livid” reaction in a worshipper in a Sikh temple in Bristol by discussing his enthusiasm for ending tariffs on whisky traded between the UK and India. Alcohol is forbidden under some Sikh teachings. Continental drift Boris Johnson referred to Africa as “that country” in his Conservative party conference speech.

Tweet like Trump The foreign secretary suggested he wished he could tweet like Donald Trump, despite intense criticism of the US president’s use of Twitter, on which he has launched personal attacks against his foes.

Johnson’s description of the US president came on Trump’s favourite TV channel Fox News. He is in US to speak to members of Congress about the need to retain the Iranian nuclear deal, which the president has refused to re-certify.

“The American president is one of the great huge global brands and is penetrating corners of the global consciousness that I think few other presidents have ever done,” he said.

He also defended Trump’s controversial tweets, saying they were an effective means of communication “no matter how rambunctious”.

“Yes a lot of people don’t like it and a lot of people relate to it,” he said. “In an age when people have been turned off politics it’s more direct and it’s more communicative than a lot of previous presidents have managed.”

Johnson accepted he faced some consular issues in Iran after his remarks about Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe were seized on by the Iranian judiciary to press further charges against her. She is currently serving a five-year jail term after being accused of espionage – a charge she denies.

Labour MPs are considering sending him to the privileges committee for making an untruthful statement to the effect that she had been conducting journalism courses in Iran.

Johnson has accepted his remarks could have been clearer, but insists they were deliberately misconstrued and refuses to apologise. He claims to have had assurances from Tehran that his remarks have had no effect on the judicial process in Iran, and said he had underlined that Zaghari-Ratcliffe had not been training journalists in his conversation with the Iranian government.

Johnson has promised to visit Iran before Christmas and if appropriate will visit her in jail.

Some Tory MPs are aghast at his handling of the issue and claim his remarks have made Zaghari Ratcliffe a much more precious bargaining commodity for Tehran.