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»Active actor on the world stage« - Boris Johnson
Photo: POOL / REUTERS
Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson has announced the construction of a new "national flagship" with which the United Kingdom intends to advance its foreign and trade policy interests after Brexit.
Among other things, high-level trade talks and political summits will take place on the ship, as Johnson said on Saturday.
According to Downing Street, construction of the ship will begin next year and last about five years, after which it will be in operation for about 30 years.
A name has not yet been chosen.
Conservative MPs are pushing for it to be named after Prince Philip, the recently deceased husband of Queen Elizabeth II. The cost is believed to be around £ 200 million.
For the first time since 1997, Great Britain is to receive a national flagship again.
At that time the royal yacht »Britannia« was decommissioned and has been anchored as a museum in Scotland ever since.
Johnson: "Great, Independent Maritime Trade Nation"
The role of the new ship will, however, differ significantly from that of its predecessors, stressed Johnson. The new ship will “reflect the burgeoning status as a large, independent maritime trading nation” and be a “clear and strong symbol of our commitment to be an active player on the world stage”.
Great Britain officially left the EU in January 2020.
At the beginning of this year, the United Kingdom also withdrew from the common internal market and the customs union.
London is currently in talks with several countries about future trade agreements.
Johnson has repeatedly stressed that the UK could decide on its own trade policy after Brexit.
In addition, the government is arming the military and wants to become the leading naval power after the United States.
However, important trade talks are currently stalling, for example with the USA, but also with Norway and Australia.
pbe / AFP / dpa