The British government announced on Saturday that Prime Minister Gordon Brown will visit Washington on March 3 to meet with US President Barack Obama.

A Downing Street spokesman said the two leaders will discuss the London financial summit to be held in April, as well as the " common global challenges" faced by Britain and the United States.

They will also discuss the situation in Afghanistan, the spokesman said.

The announcement suggests that Brown will be the first European leader to visit the United States since the new president was sworn in on Jan. 20.

This is a breakthrough for the British government amid concerns that the "special relationship" fostered with the former U.S. administration under President George W. Bush may not continue into the Obama presidency.

(Xinhua News Agency February 22, 2009)