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Now it's Kiel's Starmer's turn.
After French President Emmanuel Macron navigated a meeting with President Trump on Monday, he slipped through the rockiest shallow waters but barely made any progress, British prime minister Stage met Trump on Thursday. It pleads that the United States will not abandon Ukraine.
Starmer faces the same balanced act that Macron did. This is when Trump greeted the newly elected French president in 2017 with the first handshake of some memorable grips – and the moment in Glynn.
Unlike Macron, Starmer will arrive at an armed oval office, pledging to increase his country's military spending to 2.5% of gross domestic product by 2027 and 3% within 10 years. . It addresses one of Trump's core complaints. His claim that Europeans are free riders and are evacuated under American security umbrellas.
To fund Realting, Starmer will support the UK's overseas development assistance. This is an echoing move on a more modest scale, with Trump dismantling the US International Development Agency. Starmer's motivation is not ideology, but budget — he says the cut is a shame — but Trump may approve it.
British officials say Starmer has a gesture to build confidence in defense, a strong support show for Ukrainian President Voldimi Zelensky, and peace with Russian President Vladimir V. Putin, who has failed to establish security. He said he would warn him not to fall into the agreement. Ukraine guarantee.
“The important thing is to go to a ceasefire or ceasefire that doesn't translate into durable peace, not wanting to repeat previous mistakes when dealing with Putin,” said Peter Mandelson, who became British ambassador. Ta. Three weeks ago, Washington arranged a visit.
Mandelson said Starmer had a different style than Macron. Macron called Trump “Dear Donald” and slapped him on his lap. But Mandelson said that the boss's less empirical approach was also effective.
“The Prime Minister has personal ties with President Trump, established through a series of calls and meetings,” Mandelson said in an interview. “Kiel Starmer can speak the truth fully and respectfully speak the truth to power, so that the President can see what he and the United States can escape from any situation. He's a straightforward man who spoke clearly.”
Mandelson noted the praises of Defense Secretary Pete Hegses after the complainants announced an increase in military spending. Hegses called it “a strong step from a lasting partner.”
Whether it will dispose Trump more positively towards Starmer's debate about Ukraine and Russia is another question, but the president will also be hit with other news. A transaction that takes over revenue from several mineral resources.
Trump told reporters that Zelensky is seeking his own oval office meeting on Friday. If that meeting is confirmed, it will be a star entanglement between the two famous encounters between Macron and Zelensky.
But Starmer's rushing defence commitment reminds him that his Labour party won a landslide majority in Congress last July, making him a credibility with other European leaders and unparalleled Trump may give.
Analysts said it is difficult to imagine France and Germany moving fast given the political uncertainty of both countries. Macron's control over the French parliament has been eroded since the election last summer. German Prime Minister Friedrich Merz has been assembled the coalition after his victory last Sunday.
Malcolm Chalmers, assistant director of the Royal United Services Institute, a London research group, said: “Europeans must immediately take primary responsibility for their defense.”
Starmer also drew a line between himself and Merz on the future of the Transatlantic Alliance. After the victory, Merz said the Trump administration “doesn't really care about the fate of Europe.” He said his priority was to build “independent European defensive capabilities.”
In contrast, Starmer reaffirmed the relationship between the UK and the US. “We must refuse to make a false choice between allies on one side of the Atlantic,” he told Congress Tuesday, “It's a special relationship. It's a strong relationship. I think I'm not a relationship. That's what I want to go from strength to strength.”
British authorities said the prime minister would also like to announce cooperation with Trump on advanced technologies, including artificial intelligence. They say his focus is not on the future, but on labelling President Zelensky as a dictator or re-litigating issues like his claim that Ukraine has begun a war with Russia. I stated.
“Interactions about words and semantics is a priority,” Mandelson said. “He just wants to get things done, to make sure we know what the other side is doing, as each other's closest allies.”
