LONDON, Jan 10, 2013 (AFP) - Britain tried on Thursday to play down embarrassing comments by its closest ally the United States expressing concern about London's plans to renegotiate its relationship with the EU.

Prime Minister David Cameron was caught on the hop on Wednesday when the US assistant secretary for European affairs, Philip Gordon, warned that Britain risked becoming too inward looking.

The US official's comments came ahead of a major speech by Cameron later this month in which he is expected to set out his ideas for taking back powers from Europe, possibly through a referendum.

Asked whether Cameron was happy with the US comments, his spokesman said Thursday: "What Philip Gordon was setting out yesterday was the US is in favour of an outward-looking EU with Britain in it, and that's very much our view."

The spokesman would not say whether Cameron would hold a referendum on Europe, as many members of his Conservative party are pressuring him to do, or merely go to voters with the plan in the next general election due in 2015.

"The prime minister's view is that he wants to change Britain's relationship with the EU and seek fresh consent for that," the spokesman said, without elaborating.

'Growing relationship with the EU'

Gordon's remarks poured fuel on the fire of a debate that has caused tensions in recent months between the Conservatives and the junior partners in the British coalition government, the pro-European Liberal Democrats.

"We have a growing relationship with the EU as an institution, which has an increasing voice in the world, and we want to see a strong British voice in that EU," Gordon told journalists in London, in remarks reported in Thursday's press.

"That is in America's interests. We welcome an outward-looking EU with Britain in it."

Gordon warned that "referendums have often turned countries inward", and raised concerns about the time spent discussing the EU's structures.

"Every hour at a summit spent debating the institutional make-up of the European Union is one hour less spent on how to deal with the common issues of jobs, growth and international peace around the world," he said.