After Netanyahu, Johnson meets Pence amid Brexit crisis

US Vice President Mike Pence tiptoed into the Brexit fury as he met with embattled British Prime Minister Boris Johnson.

Wrapping up a week in Europe, Pence thanks Johnson for the welcome “at a very busy time here in the United Kingdom.”

Johnson downplays the Brexit drama, saying it’s “always busy.”

Pence delivered greetings from US President Donald Trump and said Trump has asked him to assure Johnson that the US “supports the United Kingdom’s decision to leave the European Union” and “is ready, willing and able to immediately negotiate a free trade agreement with the UK.”

Britain’s Prime Minister Boris Johnson (R) holds a meeting with US Vice-President Mike Pence (L) inside 10 Downing Street in central London on September 5, 2019. (Peter SUMMERS / POOL / AFP)

Johnson replies that was “fantastic.” He expressed hope for the removal of trade barriers on British products including lamb, beef and haggis, a Scottish delicacy made with the lungs of sheep.

Johnson has been pushing for an early election as a way to break Britain’s Brexit impasse, as lawmakers try to stop the UK from leaving the European Union next month without a divorce deal in place.

His meeting with Pence comes hours after he met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

— AP