Karen Bradley to brief US politicians on Northern Ireland

Ms Bradley will meet senior politicians on Capitol Hill who have a strong interest in Northern Ireland

The secretary of state will emphasise the government's opposition to a hard border in Ireland following Brexit during a visit to the United States.

Karen Bradley is visiting Boston and Washington this week.

She said she wants to build relationships at a "crucial time" as the government aims to restore devolution in Northern Ireland.

The NI Assembly has been suspended since January 2017. Talks to resurrect the institutions have failed.

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Last week, Ms Bradley met with the main political parties in Northern Ireland about starting a new round of talks.

During her visit to the US, she will meet senior politicians on Capitol Hill who have a strong interest in Northern Ireland.

She will hold bilateral meetings with political figures from the White House and State Department and various members of Congress to update them on the government's priorities in Northern Ireland.

The NI Secretary will meet the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and the Friends of Ireland Caucus to brief them on the work that she is doing to restore an executive and help deliver a Brexit deal that avoids a hard border between between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland and a border down the Irish Sea.

'Unique relationship'

Ms Bradley is also set to deliver a keynote speech in Washington and undertake a series of high-level engagements with leaders from business and Irish-American civic society in Boston.

"As secretary of state, I aim to build on and deepen the unique relationship with key partners in the United States in this 20th anniversary year of the Belfast Agreement," she said.

"The UK government's commitment to the Belfast Agreement and its successors remains steadfast and has been the bedrock of all that has achieved over the past 20 years.

"Everything we do will have at its core the protection and implementation of the agreement as we leave the European Union.

"I look forward to meeting senior US politicians and policymakers to update them on my plan to enable a period where an executive can be appointed and formed, as well as setting out how the UK government will ensure that Northern Ireland's unique circumstances are protected and advanced in the months ahead."