Prime Minister David Cameron on Thursday hosted President Muhammadu Buhari to breakfast at Lancaster House in London, ahead of the anti-corruption summit.
The event was the first where both men would be seen together in public since the video of a private conversation which the British leader had with the Queen went viral.
Cameron had referred to Nigeria and Afghanistan as “fantastically corrupt countries”, a remark that sparked a wave of criticisms.
Rising in defence of both countries, Cobus de Swardt, managing director of Transparency International, told the British Prime Minister that his country had been “providing a safe haven for corrupt assets”.
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The Guardian of London also accused Cameron, Britain and the west of “epic hypocrisy”.
However, the Prime Minister tactically withdrew the comment when he appeared at the house of commons, where he was summoned over the issue.
“First of all I had better check the microphone is on before speaking… tips on diplomacy are useful, given the last 24 hours I have made many unforced errors,” he said.
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“The leaders of Nigeria and Afghanistan are battling hard against very corrupt systems and have made remarkable steps forward.”
Other world leaders also attended the breakfast meeting.
Some of them were President John Mahama of Ghana; President Ashraf Ghani of Afghanistan; John Kerry, secretary of state of the US; and Christine Lagarde, managing director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Christine Lagarde.
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