President Obama, First Lady Will Host State Dinner For Prime Minister David Cameron

The Special Relationship honored on March 13-14...
President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama will welcome Prime Minister David Cameron of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and his wife, Samantha Cameron, to the White House for an Official Visit on March 13th and 14th, which includes a State Dinner, the White House announced today. It will be the first State Dinner of 2012, and the sixth of President Obama's Administration. (Above: The President and Prime Minister on the South Lawn in 2010)

"The visit will highlight the fundamental importance of the U.S.-UK special relationship and the depth of the friendship between the American people and the people of the United Kingdom," the White House said.

Cameron, as Prime Minister, is making an Official Visit, not a State Visit, though the dinner has been dubbed a "State Dinner." The President and Mr. Cameron will discuss Afghanistan, the Middle East, Iran, human rights, and global economic stability and growth, the White House said.

"The Prime Minister's visit will reciprocate the gracious hospitality shown to the President and Mrs. Obama by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, Mr. and Mrs. Cameron, and the British people during the State Visit that was hosted by Queen Elizabeth II in May 2011," the White House noted.

Update, March 9: The visit events begin on Tuesday the 13th, when the Special Relationship will include a Special Field Trip to the battleground state of Ohio, so the President and Prime Minister can attend the first round of the NCAA mens' college basketball tournament in Dayton. They'll watch Mississippi Valley State vs. Western Kentucky. Mrs. Obama will escort Mrs. Cameron to American University on Tuesday afternoon, for a special Let's Move! mini-Olympics event.

On Wednesday morning, the Obamas will formally welcome the Camerons with a glorious Arrival Ceremony on the South Lawn, complete with a troop review and a 19-shot cannon salute.
After a morning of meetings, a news conference, and a luncheon for the Camerons at the State Department co-hosted by Vice President Joe Biden and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, there will be another, smaller evening arrival ceremony under the North Portico, ahead of the evening's black-tie State Dinner.

British actor Damian Lewis, star of the TV show Homeland, is one celebrity confirmed on the guest list. Mrs. Obama will announce the menu, entertainment and guest list for the dinner during an event on Wednesday afternoon in the State Dining Room, when she will host young women from DC area schools as well as a delegation from the Elizabeth Garrett Anderson School in London. End update

Downing Street confirms on Twitter...
Downing Street confirmed on Twitter that Mr. Cameron and his wife will be traveling to the US, writing on @Number10gov "The Prime Minister and Mrs Cameron have accepted invitation from @whitehouse for official visit to the US on 13th & 14th March."

Last May, The Queen hosted hosted a State Banquet at Buckingham Palace for Mr. Obama. The President and Mrs. Obama reciprocated while in London, hosting what the White House dubbed a "Return State Dinner," held at the mansion home of the US Ambassador.

The Cameron State Dinner menu, as has become a tradition, will likely highlight the bounty of Mrs. Obama's Kitchen Garden. The President and Mrs. Obama served beef as the entree for every high-profile dinner in 2011, and four of the five State Dinner menus have starred beef, too. The most recent State Dinner honored South Korea's President Lee Myung-bak and his wife First Lady Kim Yoon-ok. It was one of three State Dinners in 2011: The other two were for Germany's Chancellor Angela Merkel and China's President Hu Jintao. In 2010, Mexico's President Felipe Calderón and his wife Mrs. Margarita Zavala were honored, and in 2009, India's Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his wife Mrs. Gursharan Kaur were honored. CLICK HERE for links to all the State Dinner menus.

Personal bonds...
The Camerons' visit will spotlight "the strong personal bond that has developed between the two leaders and their families," the White House said. The Camerons, like the Obamas, are parents, and the two couples have spent much time together since the Prime Minister was elected in 2010, the youngest to hold his post in 198 years. Outings have included the President and Prime Minister playing ping pong in England and making a famous World Cup beer bet, as well as the two couples co-hosting a barbecue for members of the US and UK armed forces together last year at 10 Downing Street. The Camerons have two daughters and a son, and were also parents to a son who died in 2009 from cerebral palsy and epilepsy, aged six. (Above: Mrs. Obama and Mrs. Cameron having tea in the Camerons' private residence at Downing Street in May of 2011)

More from the White House announcement:

"The visit will also be an opportunity to recall the valor and sacrifice of the U.S. and British armed forces and their long tradition of standing shoulder-to-shoulder beside each other in defense of our liberties and shared values. The visit will underscore the strength of our economic links, which contribute to millions of jobs on both sides of the Atlantic.

"During the visit, the President and the Prime Minister are expected to discuss the upcoming NATO and G-8 summits, as well as the broad array of global issues on which the United States and the United Kingdom cooperate closely in order to advance our common values and shared interests, including: Afghanistan, the Middle East, Iran, human rights, and global economic stability and growth.

They will also review progress in the implementation of the various initiatives launched during the President's State Visit to the UK last year."

*Top photo by Pete Souza/White House, taken on the South Lawn, July 20, 2010; second photo by Lawrence Jackson/White House, taken in London, England, on May 24, 2011.