UK rivals Cameron and Johnson ‘make peace’ over whisky at King David Hotel
Former PM and his school chum turned bitter opponent said to resolve their devastating EU Brexit row in long chat during Jerusalem visit for Peres funeral
Britain’s former prime minister and the man who expedited his downfall reportedly buried their differences in a long heart-to-heart over whisky in Jerusalem’s King David Hotel last week, in what the Sun newspaper on Tuesday said was being dubbed the UK’s “Middle East peace process.”
Ex-PM David Cameron and current Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson were in Israel to attend the funeral of former Israeli president and prime minister Shimon Peres.
They were both staying at the King David and took the opportunity last Thursday night to “put the world to rights” in a late night talk and whisky session on the balcony of a room at the hotel, the Sun said.
The two Conservative Party politicians, friends and rivals since their young days at Eton and Oxford University, fell out in spectacular fashion when Johnson championed this year’s successful campaign for Britain to exit the European Union, against Cameron’s wishes.
Johnson’s so-called Brexit camp was victorious in a referendum in June, and Cameron promptly resigned as prime minister. Johnson had hoped to succeed him, but abandoned his campaign for the top job, and Conservative colleague Theresa May replaced Cameron instead. May in turn appointed Johnson to the prestigious post of foreign secretary, while Cameron has since resigned as an MP.
After months of bickering and bitter insults, the two “made up” in Jerusalem, the Sun reported. “Boris has told friends that over a very long conversation, he and Mr Cameron had ‘a pretty frank exchange of views’ over the EU fight.”
“After eventually clearing the air, they moved on to share views on world affairs and the high and lows of the ex-PM’s time in No. 10,” the report said.
It added: “Since coming back from Israel, Boris has mounted a passionate defense of Mr. Cameron’s legacy, telling friends: ‘It’s not fair at all to say Dave was a bad leader of the party because of how it all ended. He turned it all around and made us electable again, and that was a huge achievement.'”
Many of the dozens of international leaders and representatives attending the Friday funeral for Peres stayed at the King David. The unexpected onrush of leaders forced the prestigious 85-year-old hotel to clear most of its rooms — finding alternative accommodation for guests who were already there.
Another British benefit of the Peres funeral saw Prince Charles take advantage of his trip to visit the grave of his paternal grandmother, Princess Alice of Battenberg, a righteous gentile who saved a Jewish family from the Nazis during World War II.
