Donald Trump says he likes British Prime Minister Keir Starmer ‘a lot’

Open the White House Watch newsletter for free

Your guide to what the 2024 US elections mean for Washington and the world

Donald Trump has raised hopes in London that a constructive relationship with the UK could be established, telling reporters that he likes Sir Keir Starmer “very much” and that he could travel to Britain on his first foreign trip since returning to the White House.

TrumpHe, who said he would speak to the UK Prime Minister “in the next 24 hours”, said of Starmer: “He’s a Liberal, which is a little bit different from me, but I think he’s a very good person and I think he’s done a very good job.” Good job so far.”

The US President’s positive comments will reinforce the feeling in Downing Street that Trump is not seeking a confrontation with Starmer, despite previous tensions with the Prime Minister and senior members of his government.

Expectations in London are that Trump will not oppose the appointment of Lord Peter Mandelson as Britain’s new ambassador to Washington. He is scheduled to begin his position next month.

Starmer’s allies also hope Trump won’t do so Prevent a controversial deal Britain cedes its sovereignty over the Chagos Islands to Mauritius in exchange for long-term guarantees regarding the future of the British-American military base in Diego Garcia.

Trump did not mention the issue when he spoke to Starmer before Christmas, and speaking aboard Air Force One, he told reporters: “It wasn’t number one on my list. I’ll be honest with you.”

The US President told a “group” of journalists on Saturday evening that he has a good relationship with Starmer. “He represented his country in terms of philosophy,” Trump said.

“I may not agree with his philosophy, but I have a very good relationship with him.” Trump met with Starmer for dinner last September at Trump Tower, in what both sides considered a positive meeting.

Asked where he might go on his first international trip in his second term in the White House, Trump said: “It could be Saudi Arabia, or the United Kingdom. Traditionally it could be the United Kingdom.

“The last time I went to Saudi Arabia because they agreed to buy $450 billion worth of American goods.”

Starmer this month tThe old Financial Times newspaper in Kyiv He said that his relationship was “constructive” with Trump, despite numerous criticisms of the US president by Labor Party ministers in the past.

Trump Objected against Labor staff were implicated in Kamala Harris’ failed presidential campaign, while tech billionaire Elon Musk – whom Trump described as a “waste destroyer” in his administration – described Starmer as a “tyrant”.

David Lammy, the British foreign secretary, had previously described Trump as a “misogynistic sociopath with neo-Nazi sympathies,” although Lammy said the two mended relations at a Trump Tower dinner in September.

Downing Street has received no indication from Trump’s team that the president will block Mandelson from appointing Mandelson as the new UK ambassador, despite the counterpart’s previous role as EU commissioner and his close ties to China. “No problem,” one person familiar with the matter said.

Starmer’s team is also confident that Trump will share officials at the US State Department and the Pentagon’s view that the Chagos Islands deal is good for US security, despite it being criticized by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

Trump’s positive comments about Starmer contrast with those he has made since his inauguration regarding the European Union and Canada, both of which the president has indicated could be subject to punitive tariffs.

Jonathan Reynolds, British Trade Secretary, Argue That Britain should not be exposed to tariffs, given that trade between the UK and the US is mainly services-based and broadly balanced.