LONDON: Reacting to Donald Trump’s victory in US presidential election for second term, London Mayor Sadiq Khan said that the Republican’s win shows the need to build a world where “racism and hatred is rejected”.
The mayor and the US president-elect have had a long-running feud dating back to before Trump’s first term in the White House.
After Trump claimed victory over Kamala Harris, Khan said he understands “many Londoners will be anxious” and “fearful about what it will mean for democracy and for women’s rights”.
He said they may also have concerns about what a Trump victory means for “the situation in the Middle East or the fate of Ukraine”, while “others will be worried about the future of Nato or tackling the climate crisis”.
Khan said: “London is – and will always be – for everyone. We will always be pro-women, pro-diversity, pro-climate and pro-human rights.
“London is a place where we’re proud of our diversity, proud of the contribution of all our communities and proud of our spirit of unity. These are some of the values that will continue to bind us together as Londoners.
“The lesson of today is that progress is not inevitable.
“But asserting our progressive values is more important than ever – re-committing to building a world where racism and hatred is rejected, the fundamental rights of women and girls are upheld, and where we continue to tackle the crisis of climate change head-on.”
Khan’s spat with Trump dates back to at least 2015, when the Labour politician condemned the then presidential hopeful’s suggestion that Muslims should be banned from travelling to the US.
After Khan’s election in 2016, the mayor described Trump’s views on Islam as “ignorant”, prompting the US tycoon to challenge him to an IQ test.
The spat intensified following the 2017 London Bridge terror attack when Trump said: “At least seven dead and 48 wounded in terror attack and Mayor of London says there is ‘no reason to be alarmed!’.”
Khan had actually said the public should not be alarmed by an increased police presence in the wake of the atrocity.
A mayor’s spokesperson said Khan had “more important things to do than respond to Donald Trump’s ill-informed tweet”.
But Trump claimed the mayor’s explanation of the comment was a “pathetic excuse”.
In 2018, Khan’s office gave permission for an inflatable depicting Trump as a baby to fly in Parliament Square as the US president visited the UK.
On the eve of his visit, the president told The Sun, Khan had “done a very bad job on terrorism”.
In June 2019, during Trump’s official state visit to the UK, the president reignited the row before even setting foot on British soil.
Moments before he stepped off the plane, the president tweeted that Khan “has done a terrible job as Mayor of London” and was “a stone cold loser who should focus on crime in London, not me”.
Khan responded: “I’m not 12 years old in a playground, I’m just surprised Donald Trump thinks he is.”
Later that month, Trump said Khan was “a disaster” and a “national disgrace” after a spate of violence in London, where three men were killed in separate attacks in less than 24 hours.
