Prime Minister and President claim relationship is stronger than ever

Gordon Brown warmly embraced the "special relationship" in a show of unity with George Bush at the White House on the second day of his visit to the United States.

The Prime Minister praised the US President's leadership in rooting out terrorism, saying that the world owed him "a huge debt of gratitude" for ensuring there would be no hiding place for terrorists.

Mr Brown told a press conference in the Rose Garden: "It is my profound belief that over many decades now, no international partnership has served the world better than the special relationship between our two countries."

He said the bond between them was "stronger than ever" and they would work together in a "strong and steadfast" way to promote freedom and justice.

The President joked that their relationship was so special he would be cooking Mr Brown and his wife, Sarah, a "hamburger, well done" at the White House and brushed aside suggestions that his relationship with Tony Blair was stronger. Praising Mr Brown's stand against terrorism in Britain and abroad, Mr Bush said: "We're making history together."

Speaking after Mr Brown had met the three candidates for the presidency, Mr Bush added: "Prime Minister Brown sees our relationship is very special and I am confident future presidents will keep it that way." On his domestic woes, Mr Brown insisted: "I am sticking to the job and I am getting on with the job." And he insisted Britain and America shared was a common determination to tackle the root causes of the global credit crunch.

He again defended his decision to abolish the 10p lower rate of income tax, insisting the Government was taking the right long-term decisions for the British economy.

The Prime Minister's personal warmth towards President Bush contrasted with his cool approach when he visited his Camp David retreat last July in a deliberate break with his predecessor Mr Blair.

The President praised the Mr Brown for his stance over the post-election deadlock in Zimbabwe. "You can't have elections unless you are willing to put the results out. What kind of election is it to not let the will of the people be known?"

The two leaders joined forces in calling for tougher sanctions against Iran to halt its development of a nuclear bomb. They condemned Iran's refusal to implement UN resolution 1803 which imposes travel sanctions on Iranian leaders and an asset freeze for continuing with its weapons-grade uranium programme.

The Bush administration has been pressing Mr Brown to match the more robust approach to Iran adopted by President Nicolas Sarkozy of France, who, like the Americans, has refused to rule out the use of military force.

However, Mr Brown has privately insisted on continuing to use sanctions through the UN to call a halt to Iran's nuclear ambitions.

Both the President and the Prime Minister were aware that their calls for tougher action through the UN are likely to be frustrated on Wednesday by China and Russia.

On Iraq, the two leaders agreed to provide more economic support for Basra and to shore up the shaky authority of President Nouri al-Maliki.

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