Britain’s new prime minister Liz Truss has flown overnight to the United Nations General Assembly in new York, straight from the queens funeral. The monarch’s death has so far dominated the start of the Truss premiership.
After two years’ worth of virtual and hybrid summits, leaders around the world will gather at the UN headquarters to meet in person. Many of them will have met each other in London, where royalties and political power from all over the world paid their respects to Queen Elizabeth II.
Since The Queen’s death on the 8thSeptember was a time of national mourning, with politics on standby. The traditional hostilities of British politics are expected to resume today, with yesterday’s funeral marking the end of the national mourning period.
The Commons will not be sitting today. Instead, it will sit for an extra day on Friday this week, when Kwasi Kwarteng, the new Chancellor, is scheduled to make a statement about his plans regarding tax and spending.
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The war in Ukraine is expected to dominate Truss’s debut speech to the UN. She will likely press for more support for Kyiv, and call for nations to stop buying Russian oil or gas.
In a statement already released from Downing Street, Truss has said, ““Too many lives — in Ukraine, in Europe and around the world — are being manipulated by a dependence on Russian energy”. She accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of throwing “millions of people in Europe into a colder and more difficult winter” by squeezing gas supplies.
Although the UK imports a lower proportion of its oil and gas from Russia compared to mainland Europe, it has been hit by soaring global energy prices, spurring a cost-of-living crisis that is Truss’ most pressing domestic challenge.
Truss will also be meeting with Joe Biden on Wednesday. The pair were due to meet at Downing Street Sunday, but it was canceled.
Truss is also expected to meet with French President Emmanuel Macron for her first bilateral meeting. The meeting with Macon is being closely monitored. During the recent Conservative party leadership election, Truss said that the “jury’s out” on whether the French President is a “friend or foe”. The comment is said to have angered Macron’s team, despite insistence from Truss’ aides that it was said in jest.
