World leaders yesterday congratulated Boris Johnson after the announcement of his victory in the race to become Britain’s next prime minister.
United States President Donald Trump was the first world leader to offer his congratulations. Trump tweeted: “Congratulations to Boris Johnson on becoming the new Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. He will be great!” The president had endorsed Johnson to succeed May.
The Israeli leader offered “heartfelt congratulations from Jerusalem” on Twitter. He said he is looking forward to facing common challenges with Boris Johnson, adding that he looks forward to cooperating “both in facing our common challenges and seizing the opportunities ahead.”
Johnson also received applause from the head of Israel’s Kibbutz Movement, who said in a statement that the prime minister’s time as a volunteer on a kibbutz in 1984 “left him a soft spot for Israel.” Johnson last visited Israel in 2017 as foreign secretary and is widely perceived as having a sympathetic view of Israel.
In her message, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said she is looking forward to working well with him. In a tweet yesterday, spokeswoman Ulrike Demmer quoted Merkel as saying that “our countries should be linked by a close friendship in the future as well.”
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in his congratulatory message asked Johnson to minimize Brexit’s negative impact on Japanese companies. The prime minister’s office said Abe, in his congratulatory message yesterday, told Johnson he hoped to closely cooperate with Britain in tackling security, defense and other international issues, while further deepening their countries’ bilateral friendship.
Abe expressed high expectations for Britain to lead free and active economy in Europe and the global community, while listening to business interests that includes Japanese companies to mitigate the impact of Brexit. Abe said Japan hoped to see Britain’s orderly exit from the EU based on an agreement, which he said would contribute to minimize Brexit’s adverse effect on the world economy and Japanese businesses in Britain.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said he believes Turkish-British ties will flourish under Boris Johnson’s term as prime minister. In a message posted on Twitter yesterday, Erdogan congratulated Johnson who won the campaign for Britain’s Conservative Party leadership and is set to replace Theresa May as prime minister.
Erdogan wished Johnson success in his new job and added: “I believe that the Turkey-United Kingdom relations will flourish even more during this new era.” Johnson, who has part Turkish ancestry, received a warm welcome in Turkey in 2016 when he visited as foreign secretary despite the fact that he had based his Brexit campaign on the possibility of Turkey joining the EU and millions of Turks entering Britain. He has also composed an offensive poem about Erdogan. European Commission President-elect Ursula von der Leyen, also, congratulated Johnson.
Von der Leyen said yesterday she was looking forward to a good working relationship with Johnson following his victory in the Conservative Party leadership battle.
With Britain scheduled to leave the European Union on Oct. 31, von der Leyen says, “We have the duty to deliver something which is good for the people of Europe and the United Kingdom.”
French President Emmanuel Macron said he wants to work “as quickly as possible” with Johnson, not just on European issues but on Iran and international security, subjects in which France is closely linked to Britain and Germany.
Iran’s foreign minister has congratulated Johnson. Mohammad Javad Zarif tweeted.