Peter Mandelson's trade background key to pivotal Washington role

20 December 2024, 00:31 | Updated: 20 December 2024, 02:25

The post may be seen as glittering and the man as controversial and divisive but beyond those truths, the role of British ambassador to Washington is pivotal and relationship-defining.

That is particularly the case right now: to navigate the "special relationship" through Donald Trump's second presidency.

And so this is not a decision that would have been taken without serious consideration despite the baggage some may see Lord Mandelson as carrying.

It follows months of speculation over who could get the job.

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Back last summer, before Trump won the election, a candidate had already been identified by former prime minister Rishi Sunak. He'd given the nod to his national security advisor Sir Tim Barrow, a former ambassador to Russia and the EU.

But then Sunak lost the election. He was out along with his pick. One of diplomacy's best jobs and Washington's finest buildings was almost to be Barrow's, but not quite. What a blow.

Trump's victory focused minds. It required a particular candidate and doubtless a particular type of character - not necessarily the same type as would have been chosen to navigate a Harris administration.

Lord Mandelson is a political shapeshifter. He is a sharp and agile operator. He is decisive and direct. But he also understands the sensitivities of navigating Trump's unpredictable and transactional style.

All those traits could be applied to the person Lord Mandelson will take over from.

Dame Karen Pierce became ambassador in 2020 towards the end of Trump's first term.

A career diplomat, she moved into the role after the previous ambassador, Sir Kim Darroch, was effectively kicked out of America by Trump after a series of less-than-complementary diplomatic cables were leaked.

Dame Karen and her team rebuilt the relationship with Trump's team and then fostered good terms with the Biden administration with close work on issues like Ukraine.

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And under her leadership the embassy has forged close ties with the incoming Trump administration.

Some view Trump's presidency as an existential challenge for global diplomacy. Pierce does not see him in quite those terms and nor does Peter Mandelson.