Tony Blair does not want to receive the highest US award, so as not to follow Sarkozy another Poodle Bush.

The Prime Minister of Great Britain Tony Blair has been postponing the US Higher Medal of Honor for almost four years for almost four years, which the US Congress received it only four months after a joint invasion of Iraq, writes The Times on Thursday (the full text on the website inopressa.ru ).

The British prime minister does not want him to be called the "poodle of Bush" in his homeland. Recall that this nickname has already firmly entrenched in Nicolas Sarkozy - a possible new president of France. This was previously written by The Washington Post .

The fact that the Prime Minister of England was already late for 1351 days with the receipt of a medal from President Bush was surprising for a long time in Washington and London. Dauning Street states that this issue is still in the process of consideration.

While Blair is preparing to retire, Sir David Menning, the British ambassador to Washington, in one of the rare interviews The Times said that the prime minister has always had obstacles to get a medal.

Menning, who, before the invasion, was the main adviser to the prime minister in foreign policy, is trying to change the perception of American-British relations and relations between the two leaders, whose place in history, apparently, will be determined by the war in Iraq.

“For those who consider the Prime Minister ... a kind of poodle, it doesn’t matter what he is doing,” says Sir David, whose four-year period as the ambassador comes to an end of this fall. "The following situation has developed: if he receives a medal, people will say that this confirms their point of view. But everything is significantly better - this is a more complex relationship, a kind of two -way street."

During a conversation in his Washington residence, the building of which was built by Lachacens, the ambassador said that relations between the two countries in recent years have not become less equal due to the fact that after the Second World War, America has become an influential world power, and the UK has to "act as a medium-sized power."

However, he admits that anti-American sentiments intensify due to events that undermine faith in the common values ​​of Europe and the USA. Immediately after arriving in Washington, Menning, according to him, "got the impression that politics is determined mainly by the consequences of September 11."

But the situation changed after during the intermediate November elections the democrats regained power in Congress. "Now we see a completely different congress and completely different political discussions. Not all of them are devoted to national security and Iraq. Of course, in 2008, Iraq will be a central issue, but the American politician awakened after four to five years of sleep."

"I think this is a healthy and correct trend that will affect the perception of the United States abroad. The issues that the United States bring for discussion will be much more understandable to European society." The ambassador is concerned about the growth of anti -American sentiments and says that it would be "simply stupid to turn away from the United States" and try to solve global problems alone.

"What some represent Bush in a carication form," clearly annoying Sir David. According to him, the image of the President as a single -hander who ignores other countries is based mainly on actions in Iraq. People who say in this vein do not notice recent attempts by the administration to more closely cooperate with the UN, Europe, China and Russia in the fight against the nuclear threat from the DPRK and Iran.