Britain's new Prime Minister Gordon Brown will downplay any speculation about a cooling of US-British relations during his upcoming meeting with President George W Bush. Despite recent speeches by Brown's ministers suggesting a potential shift in foreign policy away from the United States, Brown has denied any such intentions. While Brown and Bush will emphasize the importance of the "special relationship" between London and Washington at their talks at Camp David, it is unlikely that Brown will develop the same close personal bond with Bush as his predecessor Tony Blair did. Instead, they are expected to maintain a professional working relationship rather than a strong personal connection. Brown's spokesperson stated that the agenda will cover various issues such as global trade liberalization talks, climate change, and conflicts in Darfur, Iraq, Kosovo, Afghanistan, Russia, and Iran. Brown has affirmed that Britain will fulfill its obligations to the United Nations in Iraq and will not immediately withdraw British troops, despite some pressure from the Labour Party. Nevertheless, the head of the British military has suggested that Britain may be able to transfer control of Basra to Iraqi forces by the end of the year. Regarding Iran, Brown has mentioned that military action is not off the table, but he believes that sanctions could still convince Tehran to abandon its nuclear program. The strong personal relationship between Bush and Blair was established following the September 11 attacks and their joint decision to engage in the Iraq war. The continuous violence in Iraq was a factor in Blair's resignation as prime minister, leading to criticism from voters and his own party. Blair was often ridiculed as Bush's puppet by the British press, a label that Brown is eager to distance himself from. According to Reginald Dale, a senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, Brown does not have the same association with being a puppet as Blair did. Since becoming prime minister, Brown has improved the ruling party's standing in opinion polls, prompting speculation of an early election. Brown's decision to visit Angela Merkel and Nicolas Sarkozy before meeting with Bush raised some eyebrows, as he has previously shown skepticism towards the European Union. There was speculation about a change in British foreign policy when Gordon Brown appointed David Miliband as foreign secretary, who was said to have doubts about the Iraq war. Brown also appointed Mark Malloch Brown, a former UN deputy secretary general critical of Britain and the US over the war, to a junior position. Malloch Brown recently predicted that Brown and Bush would not have as close a relationship as Blair and Bush did, and another minister emphasized the importance of alliances over military strength in a speech in Washington.