US ambassador backs Starmer’s split from Lammy on ICC arrest warrant for Netanyahu

Washington’s Ambassador to the United Kingdom Jane Hartley says she’s been in communication with Labour leader — and likely next U.K. Prime Minister — Keir Starmer over Gaza, praising his consistency with U.S. messaging on the conflict.

In a wide-ranging interview with POLITICO for the Power Play podcast, she talked about her surprise at current Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s decision to call an election, President Joe Biden’s health, the special relationship between the U.S. and U.K., and the potential for a trade deal between the two nations.

She also weighed in on the apparent difference of opinion between opposition leader Starmer and his shadow foreign secretary, David Lammy, over whether Britain should comply if the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The ICC announced on May 20 that it is seeking arrest warrants for Netanyahu as well as for Israel’s defense minister and several senior Hamas figures over alleged crimes against humanity during and after Hamas’s Oct. 7 massacre in Israel.

While Lammy said last week that the U.K. has a legal obligation to comply with a warrant if issued, Hartley noted: “But I don’t think Keir Starmer has said that, has he?”

Hartley went on to signal support from the Biden administration for Starmer’s stance on the ICC arrest bid, saying: “Keir Starmer has been very thoughtful in his approach to this. He’s communicating with our government and this is a difficult issue. I mean, it’s a difficult issue for President Biden also, but I think what I’ve seen come out of Labour is pretty consistent with what the U.S. policy is.”

A difference of opinion on Labour’s front bench over the sensitive matter of how to deal with a prospective war crimes case against Israel’s far-right PM would test Labour’s cohesion on the Israel-Gaza issue.

It would also dent U.S. confidence in continuity of support at a difficult time for the Biden administration, which is facing criticism from Democratic lawmakers and supporters for its support for Israel’s bloody counteroffensive in Gaza. The criticism grew louder this week as Israeli forces pushed into Rafah, where thousands of Palestinian civilians are sheltering.

The U.S. on Monday lamented the “devastating” and “heartbreaking” images from an Israel Defense Forces missile strike, which killed dozens of displaced Palestinian civilians despite Israeli claims to have been targeting Hamas officials.

Asked how an apparent difference of opinion in Labour on the ICC stand-off might be resolved, Hartley said: “I think Keir has been tough and strong with his membership. And I’m not saying it’s been easy … We have said that Israel must comply with international humanitarian law, and civilians must be protected. There has to be a real two-state solution and a two-state solution that provides economic opportunity and rights to Palestine, we’ve said that from the beginning.”

The celebrated U.S.-U.K. ‘special relationship,’ Hartley said, is “not just special” but “essential.” She expressed confidence in continuity if Labour were elected next month.

She said, though, that she had been “a little bit surprised” that Sunak called an election. “It is a different system here, and in many ways better [than the US]. You call an election or you have an election in six weeks.”

A Biden appointee and close ally as a donor to several Democratic Party campaigns, Jane Hartley said she is resigned to leaving her role if Trump is re-elected president. | Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images

“You have two thoughtful, smart, hardworking people who care about your country running against each other. So I don’t know who’s going to win, but we look forward to working with the winner and we don’t think this special relationship will change.”

The ambassador also confirmed that she has had meetings with Starmer and his powerful chief of staff, adding, “There is a strong team on both sides. And if you look at Keir’s team, very strong, Sue Gray, people like that.”

The close U.S.-U.K. relationship has not yet, however, yielded a post-Brexit trade deal, with many Brexit backers blaming the Biden administration for de-prioritizing negotiations. 

Hartley signaled a desire for more progress. “I’m a free trader. Would I personally have liked a free trade deal? Yes, I think I would have, but you know, it has to be fair to both sides.”

“In my personal view, the UK would be a great place to start because our standards are so similar. But you know, right now we’re in election campaigns. It is not going to happen. I would hope it would happen in the next administration. I would feel very positive about that personally.”

On potential changes to that relationship stemming from the election on the other side of the Atlantic, though, Hartley was more guarded.

“I’d rather not talk about Trump,” she said. “It’s pretty obvious that President Biden believes that we’re stronger when we work with our allies. What Donald Trump would do, I have no idea.”

A Biden appointee and close ally as a donor to several Democratic Party campaigns, Hartley said she is resigned to leaving her role if Trump is re-elected president.

She dismissed worries about Biden’s match fitness in the election contest with Trump and suggested his veteran status might ultimately turn out to be an asset.

Biden is expected to join other world leaders, including Ukraine President Volodomyr Zelenskyy, to commemorate the 80th anniversary of D-Day on June 6 in Normandy. Biden’s trip to Europe will be closely watched given that the U.S. election campaign has featured attacks on his age, health and mental capacity. 

“He’s been over here five times since I’ve been here. And if you see him personally, as I have, I’m not a bit worried about it … I was in a briefing with him, which was mainly about Northern Ireland because I think we were going to Belfast, I think it was the 25th anniversary [of the Good Friday Agreement] … and it was the President who said, ‘I know this leader. I know this is going to  work — and  I know this isn’t going to work.’ So with age, you get not only wisdom, but relationships and a sense of history and knowing, who these leaders are.”

The ambassador revealed she had canceled a speech earlier this month at King’s College, Cambridge, after pro-Palestinian protestors indicated they would attempt to disrupt the event over the U.S. regime’s support for Israel’s war in Gaza.

Asked how she felt about the incident, she replied: “I felt sad actually, to be honest with you.” She said she had wanted to continue with the speaking engagement, which was on a topic unrelated to Israel and Palestine, “but I didn’t want to cause more problems for a university I care about. But I felt sad because I believe in free speech. And if there’s ever a place to have free speech, it is at universities.”