Revealed: Donald Trump ordered dismissal of UK ambassador Kim Darroch after leaked cables

Donald Trump ordered the removal of Britain’s ambassador in Washington Kim Darroch after leaked cables showed the diplomat making disparaging comments about him, The Telegraph has learned.

In a remarkable break with diplomatic norms, the US president is understood to have told his national security adviser John Bolton to “get him out of here” after the cables were published in July 2019.

Mr Bolton told this newspaper after receiving the call he then telephoned Britain’s top civil servant, Sir Mark Sedwill, and said “things are going to get worse unless you can figure out how to get him out”.

It is understood Sir Mark pushed back hard, with one ex-White House source who helped manage the fallout calling him “furious” and “white hot”. But within days Mr Darroch, now Lord Darroch, had quit.

A US president demanding the sacking of a sitting UK ambassador is a stark breach of precedent. A historian who once held the top US history post at Cambridge University said he could not think of a similar modern example.

The episode came to light as this newspaper talked to more than 20 people who saw the UK-US relationship up close under Mr Trump and got details of official meeting notes, revealing the strains placed on the special relationship.

It can also be reported:

• The White House repeatedly lobbied for Mr Trump to stay in Buckingham Palace during his UK state visit last year as Barack Obama had done

• White House advisers feared Mr Trump would have a “hissy fit” if he saw protesters during the trip and worked with UK officials to avoid that happening

• Sir Mark once complained to Mr Trump’s top national security adviser about a presidential tweet which he called “inaccurate, meddlesome and offensive”

• The US president privately expressed his opposition to Scottish independence and feared it would lead to the end of the British Open golf tournament

• Mr Trump repeatedly urged Mrs May to take a tougher stance in Brexit talks to create “leverage” and was frustrated she ignored his advice

The spat over the UK ambassador to the US was triggered when the Mail on Sunday published leaked cables which Lord Darroch, who became a peer after he left government, had sent back to London.

In the candid memos never meant to be made public Lord Darroch described Mr Trump as “radiating insecurity” and called his early administration “inept”. US broadcasters soon picked up the story.

Mr Bolton, who then was White House national security adviser but has since left, told The Daily Telegraph in detail how the president reacted and what happened next.

“The hardest US-UK issue really was when some of the cables back from the UK ambassador became public,” Mr Bolton said, looking back at his year in the White House.

“I think the morning they appeared Trump called me and said 'get him out of here'. I mean at like seven in the morning or six in the morning. Early. I was at the office but even for Trump that was early.

“So I called [Sir Mark] Sedwill. It was out in the press in Britain, obviously everybody knew about it. I said 'this isn't going to end well, you've got to pull him out'.

“He didn't want to do it obviously. And I said 'I understand why you don't want to do it. I'm just saying we're at a point here where things are going to get worse unless you can figure out how to get him out'.

“So that dragged on for a couple of days until I think they finally figured this was not a plus for anybody and then withdrew him."

The accuracy of Mr Bolton’s messages to London has been confirmed by a well-placed UK source. A third person, a White House official who worked with Mr Bolton, also said the account chimed with their understanding of what happened.

Mr Trump’s stance, as described by former US officials, is said to have been that it was “unacceptable” and “insulting” for Lord Darroch to remain in post after his critical comments.

Sir Mark, who is both cabinet secretary and the UK national security adviser, is understood to have pushed back firmly in “candid” exchanges, arguing a British ambassador could not be “run out of town”.

Lord Darroch eventually resigned. That came after Boris Johnson, then the front-runner in the Tory leadership race, declined to say in a TV debate he would keep Lord Darroch as ambassador if he won.

The cables were published on July 7 2019. Lord Darroch announced his resignation on July 10, saying: “The current situation is making it impossible for me to carry out my role as I would like.”

Mr Trump had critcised Lord Darroch in a tweet the day before, calling him a “a very stupid guy” and “a pompous fool” but not publicly calling for his sacking.

The exact role Mr Trump’s private demand played in Lord Darroch’s decision is unknown. He has largely avoided public comments since his resignation and is writing a book.

Lord Darroch and the White House did not respond to requests for comment.