Trump cancels London trip over embassy deal

WASHINGTON—President Donald Trump late Thursday canceled a trip to London planned for next month, claiming he did not want to endorse a bad deal involving the new U.S. Embassy. The facility moved from downtown London to Nine Elms, south of the city, last month and will formally open in February. Trump, who has not visited Great Britain since assuming office, had planned to attend the ribbon-cutting ceremony. “Reason I canceled my trip to London is that I am not a big fan of the Obama administration having sold perhaps the best located and finest embassy in London for ‘peanuts,’ only to build a new one in an off location for 1.2 billion dollars,” the president tweeted. The Bush administration finalized the deal to move the embassy in 2008 in a bid to alleviate space and security concerns. The new building in Nine Elms is 518,000 square feet, about twice the size of its predecessor. London Mayor Sadiq Khan said in a tweet Friday morning he’s glad Trump canceled the trip. “Many Londoners have made it clear that Donald Trump is not welcome here while he is pursuing such a divisive agenda,” Khan said. “It seems he’s finally got that message.” Trump rankled British politicians last year after retweeting videos posted by an anti-immigration activist from a British nationalist group.