Britain wants Zimbabwe back in the Commonwealth, but eyes July election

Britain's Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson arrives at a meeting with the Zimbabwe and other African delegations at the CHOGM conference in London, Britain, April 20, 2018. REUTERS/Hannah McKay

LONDON (Reuters) - Britain said on Friday it would strongly support Zimbabwe's re-entry to the Commonwealth and praised President Emmerson Mnangagwa for impressive progress since Robert Mugabe was toppled in a military coup.

But it said Mnangagwa, who became president following a military take-over, would still have to deliver on free and fair elections in July to win over Zimbabwe's critics at home and abroad.