This archive report was first published on 7 July 2019.
Published on July 7, 2019, leaked cables from the UK's ambassador to the US, Sir Kim Darroch, have exposed the chaotic and inept nature of the Trump administration's handling of international issues.
With a career spanning 29 years in diplomacy, Sir Kim Darroch has handled some of the country's most sensitive international issues, including serving as Britain's permanent representative to the European Union and national security adviser.
However, when asked to comment on the leak of the cables, Sir Kim Darroch declined to do so.
The leaked cables, which date back to 2017, reveal a pattern of frustration among foreign diplomats, including Sir Kim Darroch, as they sought to access the administration and feared that many long-running initiatives might run off the rails.
One of the cables, written just hours after President Trump reversed himself and decided not to go ahead with a military strike on Iranian bases, described a chaotic policy process at the White House, with the president coming out in the right place but getting there through a meandering policy debate.
Among the revelations in the leaked cables is a confidential letter dated June 27, 2017, in which Sir Kim Darroch expresses concerns that allegations of the Trump camp colluding with Russia during the 2016 presidential campaign
