Donald Trump hails Sir Winston Churchill as a ‘real ally’ after returning a bust of the wartime leader to the Oval Office in historic gesture
Its return was noted after footage was released of the new man in the White House signing his first orders as 45th US president
DONALD Trump has hailed Sir Winston Churchill as a "real ally" after returning a bust of the wartime leader to the White House's Oval Office.
In a boost to the "special relationship", Mr Trump made good on an agreement - first revealed by The Sun - to return the former hero PM’s likeness to the famous office within hours of being sworn in.
Its return was noted after footage was released of Mr Trump signing his first orders as the 45th president of the United States.
And in a visit to the HQ of the CIA on Saturday, the President said: "I think most of us like Churchill.
“He doesn't come from our country but had a lot to do with it, helped us, a real ally."
Churchill, who had an American mother, is the only person ever to be granted an honorary US passport.
The sculpture of his face is a replica of one given to 1960s leader Lyndon B Johnson and first appeared during former president George W Bush's administration.
When Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson flew to New York earlier this month, Mr Trump’s top aides conveyed a request to return the hotly debated statuette.
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A bitter row over the bust’s location has raged for seven years since outgoing President Barack Obama replaced it with one of Martin Luther King in 2009.
Mr Johnson had previously found himself in hot water when he blamed the swap on Mr Obama's "ancestral dislike of the British empire".
But the new President was forced to deny he had removed the bust of Dr King.
He told reporters: "I would never do that because I have great respect for Dr Martin Luther King - but this is how dishonest the media is."
He explained that a cameraman had blocked the bust of Dr King from view in the released footage.
After meeting Mr Trump in November, former Ukip leader Nigel Farage said he was "especially pleased at his very positive reaction to the idea that Sir Winston Churchill's bust should be put back in the Oval Office".