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Leaked audio shocker: UK envoy says US ‘special relationship’ not with Britain, but another ally
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Leaked remarks from Britain’s ambassador to the U.S. suggesting Washington’s «one true special relationship» is with Israel — not the United Kingdom — have sparked political backlash in London.
Sir Christian Turner reportedly told a group of British students earlier in 2026 that the United States’ one true «special relationship» is «probably Israel,» not the United Kingdom, according to leaked audio first reported by the Financial Times.
The remarks, made privately but leaked publicly during King Charles III and Queen Camilla’s high-profile visit to Washington and New York amid efforts to repair strained relations, have placed fresh scrutiny on Britain’s standing in Washington at a particularly sensitive diplomatic moment.
Turner reportedly stressed that Britain’s ties with the U.S. remain deeply intertwined, particularly on defense and security.
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«There is a deep history and affinity between us. Particularly on defence and security, we are intertwined,» according to leaked audio cited by British media. «The relationship will carry on, if you want, being ‘special,’ but I think it’s going to have to be different.»
President Donald Trump met with Britain’s King Charles III in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington on Tuesday, April 28, 2026, during a state visit. Britain’s Ambassador to the U.S. Christian Turner, Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper, Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio were also present. (Alex Brandon/AP)
Turner also said, according to the transcript, that Britain and Europe must «work to redefine» their relationship with Washington, particularly in terms of defense, rather than relying on a U.S. security umbrella.
The leak comes after recent strains between Trump and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, including disagreements over Britain’s posture toward U.S.–Israeli military action against Iran. Trump previously criticized Starmer publicly, saying he was «not Winston Churchill.»
An embassy spokesperson and a U.K. Foreign Office spokesperson sought to distance the government from the leaked remarks, telling Fox News Digital: «These were private, informal comments made to a group of U.K. sixth-form students visiting the U.S. in early February. They are certainly not any reflection of the U.K. government’s position.»
The wide-ranging informal discussion, the spokesperson explained, focused on diplomacy and the political issues of the day that students asked questions about, stressing that the remarks were clearly never intended as on-record statements of government policy.
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President Donald Trump speaks with Britain’s King Charles III during a state dinner in the East Room of the White House in Washington, D.C., April 28, 2026. (Aaron Schwartz/AFP)
Still, the controversy raises broader questions that extend beyond diplomatic optics: whether the symbolic «special relationship» between Washington and London has been eclipsed by more immediate U.S. strategic priorities, particularly Israel’s central role in American Middle East security calculations.
Barak Seener, senior fellow at the London-based Henry Jackson Society, said Turner’s remarks reflected a hard strategic reality rather than a diplomatic blunder.
«Ambassador Christian Turner was giving a realistic assessment that echoed President Trump’s criticism of NATO, calling it a ‘paper tiger’ for not contributing to joint U.S.-Israel-led operations against Iran,» Seener told Fox News Digital.
Seener pointed to his recent report, «Israel 2048: A Blueprint for an Asymmetric Geopolitical Power,» arguing that Israel’s expanding military capabilities increasingly function as a force multiplier for U.S. regional interests. By contrast, Seener argued, Britain’s modern strategic value has weakened despite its historic rhetoric.
«King Charles, in his recent speech to the U.S. Congress, was forced to emphasise the U.K. and U.S.’s shared culture and history rather than recent military contributions simply because the U.K.’s naval and military capabilities have been completely hollowed out,» Seener said.
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King Charles made history as the second British monarch to address Congress, after his mother, the late Queen Elizabeth, first did so in 1991. (Henry Nicholls/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
He added that Charles’ invocation of past joint sacrifices «does not bear any relevance to today» given Britain’s reported refusal to allow U.S. use of Royal Air Force bases for strikes on Iran.
The White House, however, emphasized continuity over controversy, telling Fox News Digital that, «President Trump has enjoyed welcoming Their Majesties to the White House this week, including yesterday morning, when he highlighted the historic, special relationship between the United States and the United Kingdom,» White House spokesperson Anna Kelly said.
«The events of this visit are unprecedented in scope and spectacle, and the President enjoyed hosting a beautiful State Dinner yesterday evening,» she added.
united kingdom, white house, uk politics, israel, king charles iii
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‘America First’ immigration overhaul bill would codify Trump’s campaign promises once and for all
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FIRST ON FOX: President Donald Trump’s ‘America First’ immigration overhaul would be codified into law under a House Republican bill that would significantly narrow legal immigration pathways by shifting the system toward high-skilled workers, eliminating most family sponsorship categories and ending the diversity visa lottery.
Immigration — both illegal and legal — remains a contentious topic in Washington, with Democrats pushing to expand pathways for migrants to obtain citizenship, while Trump and his Republican allies are seeking to restrict migration, including proposals such as ending birthright citizenship.
Rep. Barry Moore, R-Ala., introduced the Americans First Immigration Act, which would amend several key provisions in the Immigration and Nationality Act, in an effort to «putting American citizens first.»
«My bill draws a hard line – the days of putting illegals, random diversity lotteries and foreign labor ahead of American workers are over,» Moore said in a statement to Fox News Digital. «Our immigration system should serve the American people, not undercut them, and that means selecting individuals who will strengthen our economy, respect our laws, and share our values.»
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Rep. Barry Moore, R-Ala., participates in the House Judiciary Committee organizing meeting in the Rayburn House Office Building on Feb. 1, 2023. (Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc. via Getty Images)
The 70-page bill seeks to codify many of the actions already taken by the Trump administration to tighten legal immigration pathways. In December 2025, President Donald Trump paused the green card lottery program in the wake of two shootings on college campuses, and last September, Trump signed an executive order placing restrictions on the issuance of H1B1 visas, a work visa offered for specialty occupations.
«If you want to come to the United States, you should earn it through merit, not diversity lotteries or loopholes. The Americans First Immigration Act restores fairness and accountability by protecting American jobs, prioritizing the nuclear family and ensuring that every immigrant admitted is prepared to contribute and succeed,» Moore told Fox News Digital.
While Moore’s bill seeks to end the diversity lottery visa, it includes a provision to ensure that the allotment of visas for religious workers, equal to 3,000 a year, is preserved.
President Donald Trump signed two executive orders in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, D.C., on Sept. 19, 2025. The orders established the «Trump Gold Card» visa program and introduced a $100,000 fee for H-1B visas. The «Trump Gold Card» allows foreign nationals permanent residency and a pathway to U.S. citizenship for a $1 million investment in the United States. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
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Julie Kirchner, a senior advisor at the America First Policy Institute, supports Moore’s bill, particularly the measure to eliminate lottery visas.
«The Visa Lottery has a long, documented history of fraud and national security concerns and should be abolished. Under a merit-based, America First system, any immigrant would have to demonstrate their skills, ability to assimilate, and how they will contribute to the U.S.,» Kirchner told Fox News Digital.
One of the other provisions in Moore’s bill seeks to put «American workers first» by overhauling the current employment-based immigration visa program and replacing it with a points-based merit system. Under the new points-based system, applicants are ranked and will receive points on factors such as their level of English proficiency, education, their level of compensation, military service and age. All applicants must have a salary that is at least 200% above the median wage of the state they’ll reside in, and they must meet English proficiency requirements.
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Employers must also prove that they «took good faith steps» in recruiting American workers for the job offered to the foreign worker for equal compensation. The legislation also requires employers to share with the government the name and contact information of American workers who were offered the job and their offered wage. The Department of Labor will oversee and investigate compliance.
And migrants offered a visa are required to sign a petition pledging they support the U.S. Constitution and its values. The pledge also includes a requirement to disavow political groups or social groups that partake in honor killings, female infanticide or genital mutilation.
The Trump administration says foreign student visa vetting will be a continued process rather than a one-time check. (iStock)
«Ideally the government has the information in advance to bar these people from immigrating to the U.S.,» Kirchner said. «However, if a newly-arrived immigrant engages in behavior that demonstrates the statements he made to our immigration agencies were false, that can become the basis for deportation or denaturalization.»
The act would also curtail family-sponsored immigration to only be accessible to spouses of U.S. citizens, minor children, spouses of green card holders and children of green card holders. Parents, siblings, and adult children of U.S. citizens are barred.
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«What the bill does is eliminate the ability of extended family members to get a preference under the law,» Kirchner said. «Extended family members can still apply – but they would have to do so based on their own skills, merit, and ability to assimilate.»
congress, legislation, immigration, bills, republicans, politics
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Russia built global recruitment pipeline targeting vulnerable migrants for Ukraine war: report
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Russia has built what human rights investigators describe as a global pipeline recruiting vulnerable foreign nationals into its war against Ukraine, drawing tens of thousands from more than 130 countries through what groups allege are coercive, deceptive and in some cases trafficking-like practices.
After suffering major battlefield losses and seeking to avoid another politically risky domestic mobilization, Moscow institutionalized a worldwide recruitment system targeting some of the world’s most vulnerable populations to sustain its war machine, a new report by the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), Truth Hounds and the Kazakhstan International Bureau for Human Rights argues.
Russia has recruited at least 27,000 foreign nationals since February 2022 from countries across Central and South Asia, Africa, the Middle East and Latin America, according to the report. Ukrainian authorities cited in the report project that Russia could recruit another 18,500 foreign nationals in 2026 alone, which would mark the highest annual total since the full-scale invasion began.
AS WAR LOSSES NEAR 2 MILLION, RUSSIA ACCUSED OF TRAFFICKING FOREIGN RECRUITS FROM AFRICA, ASIA
Nationals of African countries sit in a section of a detention center holding foreign fighters captured while serving in the Russian army on the Ukrainian front in western Ukraine on Nov. 26, 2025. (Genya Savilov/AFP via Getty Images)
«This report highlights something fundamental: that the use of foreign fighters by Russia is neither a marginal nor a spontaneous phenomenon. Russia has built a global recruitment system that deliberately targets the most vulnerable populations — undocumented migrants, detainees, precarious workers, or even foreign students — across dozens of countries in Asia, Africa, and Latin America,» said Alexis Deswaef, president of the International Federation for Human Rights.
«Many of these men knew in some capacity what they were signing up for. But some were also deceived or coerced. But in all cases, it is a State that has instrumentalised them as part of its war machine and sent them to the most dangerous positions on the frontline.»
The report’s central allegation is that Russia’s recruitment apparatus extends far beyond traditional mercenary networks and instead functions as a state-enabled global system that exploits poverty, legal vulnerability and migration insecurity.
Investigators say recruitment evolved from relying primarily on ideologically motivated volunteers early in the war to a broader institutionalized model by mid-2023, after Russia expanded legal eligibility for foreign nationals, eased language and residency requirements, and offered citizenship and financial incentives in exchange for service.
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Nationals of African countries watch television in a detention center in western Ukraine holding foreign fighters captured while serving with Russian forces on the Ukrainian front on Nov. 26, 2025. (Genya Savilov/AFP via Getty Images)
In some cases, according to the report, migrants inside Russia were allegedly pressured to enlist through raids, detention threats, document confiscation, fabricated criminal charges and abuse. Outside Russia, recruits were often allegedly lured through promises of civilian jobs, noncombat positions or pathways to Europe, only to be routed into military contracts they often could not read.
Of 16 prisoners of war interviewed for the report, 13 said they were told they would not be required to fight, but were later deployed to frontline positions, often within weeks.
The report also alleges many foreign recruits were funneled into so-called «meat assaults» — high-risk frontal attacks associated with severe casualty rates. Ukrainian estimates cited in the report say at least 3,388 foreign fighters have been killed, with some estimates suggesting one in five recruits may not survive deployment.
HEGSETH WARNS RUSSIA AS SIGNS POINT TO MOSCOW SHARING INTEL WITH IRAN
A Russian service member stands next to a mobile recruitment center for military service under contract in Rostov-on-Don, Russia, Sept. 17, 2022. (Sergey Pivovarov/Reuters)
«Despite the fact that many states are taking measures to curb recruitment, and although Russia claims it is no longer recruiting citizens from certain countries, the predatory recruitment continues. Ukrainian authorities predict that in 2026 Russia will engage more 18,500 foreign nationals, marking the highest annual figure since 2022,» said Maria Tomak, associated researcher and advocacy expert at Truth Hounds.
«This underscores the continued relevance of our report. Our primary objective remains clear: to halt recruitment and to compel Russia to repatriate those already recruited.»
The report stops short of claiming every foreign fighter was trafficked, noting some enlisted voluntarily for financial gain, but concludes there are reasonable grounds to believe at least some cases meet international definitions of trafficking in persons through deception, coercion and exploitation.
For investigators, the broader concern is that Russia’s war effort may now depend in part on a transnational manpower pipeline that weaponizes global inequality, drawing economically desperate men from around the world into one of Europe’s deadliest conflicts.
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Russian and Chechen soldiers in a devastated Mariupol neighborhood close to the Azovstal frontline. (Maximilian Clarke/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
The report calls on governments, international organizations and Ukraine’s allies to crack down on recruitment networks, pressure Moscow diplomatically and push for repatriation of foreign nationals already caught in Russia’s military system.
Fox News Digital reached out to the Russian Embassy in Washington, D.C., and Russia’s Defense Ministry for comment but did not receive a response.
russia, conflicts, ukraine, russia investigation, human rights united nations, recruitment, wars
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