Unlike Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, who left Washington on Wednesday with everything he wanted, British Prime Minister Tony Blair is not likely to get much out of today's meeting with President Bush.
Mr Blair arrived in New York last night for a prior briefing with United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan over dinner, before travelling on to Washington for this morning's crisis summit in the White House.
Both Mr Blair and Mr Bush will present a powerful reaffirmation of their commitment to the June 30th deadline for the handover of sovereignty to Iraq.
Writing in Sunday's Observer Mr Blair made clear that Britain would not back away from the fight in Iraq or its support for the US, as the defeat of American power would be a victory for "fanatics and terrorists".
Nevertheless, fissures have opened in the US-UK coalition in recent days.
The resignation of Sir Jeremy Greenstock, Mr Blair's envoy to Iraq, reflects at a personal level serious concerns that have reportedly arisen on the British side about its inability to influence events in Iraq.
Sir Jeremy quit because he was not involved in major decisions by the US administrator, Mr Paul Bremer, and was uncomfortable with Mr Bremer's ideologically-driven style, according to reports in the British media.
Officers commanding the 10,000 British troops in Iraq have also been voicing their dismay at the overwhelming use of force by US troops in Falluja, where several hundred Iraqis were killed in the last week.
Mr Blair will, as always, be pressing Mr Bush for greater UN involvement in Iraq. On this he will find the US president more enthusiastic than before.
It is vital for Mr Bush, in an election year in the United States, to be able to present an exit strategy to the American public, especially as US casualties mount, and he is now looking to the UN for a way out.
In his prime-time press conference on Tuesday Mr Bush said he was planning to return to the UN Security Council to seek a resolution giving international sanction to the US-led forces, which will remain on to control security in Iraq possibly for years to come after the June 30th handover.
Mr Blair will convey to Mr Bush the response of Mr Annan, who on Tuesday said bluntly that the situation was too dangerous to send a large UN group into Iraq. "For the foreseeable future, insecurity is going to be a major constraint for us," Mr Annan said. "And so I cannot say right now that I am going to be sending in a large UN team."
On the Middle East the discussion is likely to be tense. The decision by Mr Bush to endorse the Sharon plan on Gaza and the West Bank has effectively pre-empted any attempt by Mr Blair to press the European view on the Middle East.
The EU is one of four parties along with the UN, the US and Russia to the road map for a settlement, which critics say was effectively torn up by Mr Bush and Mr Sharon on Wednesday.
Downing Street has voiced its approval of the Israeli plan to withdraw from Gaza but has been noticeably silent on US approval for the other aspects of the Sharon strategy.