London’s Khan Wants to Meet Trump and Lecture Him on Diversity and Islam

GettyImages-598305282
Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images for Tara Arts
Liam Deacon

London’s left-wing mayor says he would like to meet U.S. President Donald J. Trump so he can lecture him on “how diverse we are as a city and how that is a strength”, despite having previously said that Trump would not be welcome in London.

“Bearing in mind some of the things that President Trump has said about diversity, about those who follow my [Islamic] faith, [and] about London, I would be more than happy to meet with President Trump,” Sadiq Khan said on BBC Radio 4.

He also insisted he wanted to tell the President it is “not mutually incompatible, having Western values and having Islamic values,” whilst attacking him for criticizing Islam.

Mr Khan’s comments come as a senior White House source says that the President is “looking forward” to his visit to the UK, reports the Daily Mail.

President Trump’s “working visit” to the UK was announced towards the end of April, after he cancelled a previous trip to open the new U.S. Embassy in London, when Mr Khan spoke of “loud” demonstrations.

However, Khan appears to have maintained his support for protests, saying just over a week ago that “I think there will be protests, I speak to Londoners every day of the week and I think they will use the rights they have to express their freedom of speech.”

Mr Khan has previously repeatedly said President Trump is “not welcome” in London as well as comparing him to fascists and Islamic State terrorists. The Speaker of the House of Commons, meanwhile, has promised to ban him from Parliament.

In the past, Mr Khan and President Trump have clashed over the President’s proposed travel ban on terror-linked states, which Khan implied is racist. The President hit back, accusing the Mayor of being soft on terror.

Most recently, Khan accused President Trump of creating what he called a “hostile environment” in the U.S.

The row comes as the UK is looking to form a post-Brexit trade deal with the U.S., something a White House source has said this week is still supported by President Trump.

They commented over the weekend: “The President is keen for Britain to get out of the EU so we can get on with doing a great trade deal. He’s surprised it’s taking so long.”

COMMENTS

Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.