Tony Blair's private talks with Condoleezza Rice on Iraq were overshadowed last night after a senior Cabinet member lashed out at America's "failed" foreign policy.
Peter Hain, Northern Ireland and Wales Secretary, described George W Bush's administration as the most right-wing in living memory and praised the Democrats' victory and the Republicans' drubbing in the November elections as "fantastic", saying it reflected the defeat of the entire neo-con agenda.
"It's not only failed to provide a coherent international policy, it's failed wherever it's been tried and it's failed with the American electorate, who kicked it into touch last November," said Mr Hain, who is in the running to be Labour's deputy leader.
He complained that the government's international achievements, from trebling aid to Africa to helping to lift the poorest nations out of debt, "people have forgotten because of the Iraq conflict".
No 10 refused to comment on Mr Hain's remarks. The Prime Minister's spokesman said: "Cabinet collective responsibility remains, but Cabinet ministers are also . . . party figures and they make statements in that context, which I don't comment on."
Later, Jack Straw appeared to slap down his Cabinet colleague. The Commons Leader told MPs: "You can't pick and choose who other people elect to foreign governments."
He added: "Our alliance with the United States and our union with Europe are the twin pillars of our successful foreign policy and relationships abroad."
William Hague, Shadow Foreign Secretary, claimed it was "astonishing" Downing Street could not bring itself to comment on Mr Hain's "extraordinary outburst". "On the day when Condoleezza Rice is visiting Downing Street, this is yet another sign of a government that is divided and paralysed," he said.
Mr Hain's statement, in a magazine interview, was not the first time he has embarrassed his colleagues on foreign affairs. In 2000 while a minister at the Foreign Office, he had to apologise after branding France's foreign policy "contemptible" because Paris had broken the US/UK no-fly zone to take a trade delegation to Baghdad.
Ms Rice, who was stopping off in London on her way back to the US after a Middle East tour, was also due to have talks with Margaret Beckett, Foreign Secretary, last night.
Last night's talks were in private with no public statements. Mr Straw said that when he was Foreign Secretary he often held press conferences but on other occasions "for perfectly good reasons" kept the talks private.
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