Washington – WP: Pompeo Promises To Protect Jews In UK By ‘pushing Back’ Against Corbyn Leadership

Washington – US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo recently promised a group of Jewish leaders in New York that the Trump administration would make efforts to protect British Jews if Labour chief Jeremy Corbyn is elected Prime Minister, The Washington Post reported over the weekend.

The Post obtained audio recordings of the closed-door meeting between Pompeo and Jewish leaders last week, which touched on concerns over the possibility that British opposition leader Jeremy Corbyn could be elected Prime Minister, following Theresa May’s decision to step down as leader of the Conservative party and the collapse of the Conservative party in recent polls.

During the meeting, Jewish leaders asked Pompeo what the administration would do if Corbyn were to become premier. If he “is elected,” the leaders asked, “would you be willing to work with us to take on actions if life becomes very difficult for Jews in the UK?”

Pompeo responded by affirming that the administration would “push back” against any attempts by Corbyn to make life difficult for the British Jewish community, adding that the Trump administration would not “wait for” Corbyn to take action against UK Jews.

“It could be that Mr. Corbyn manages to run the gantlet and get elected. It’s possible. You should know, we won’t wait for him to do those things to begin to push back. We will do our level best,” Pompeo said. “It’s too risky and too important and too hard once it’s already happened.”

A Labour party official responded to Pompeo’s comments, telling the Post that the party was “fully committed to the support, defense, and celebration of the Jewish community,” and accusing the Trump administration of attempting to “decide who will be Britain’s next Prime Minister.”

While the UK is not scheduled to hold another general election until May 2022 (the last election was in 2017), incumbent PM Theresa May’s decision to step down and hand over control of the party – and the government has raised the possibility of snap elections. Should her successor fail to lead the UK to a successful Brexit from the European Union, the government could be dissolved, forcing early elections.

Polls show the Conservative party, which retained a plurality in Parliament in 2017 even as it lost its majority, falling to its lowest level ever, with the newly-formed Brexit party of ex-UKIP chairman Nigel Farage siphoning off traditional Tory voters.