PRIME MINISTER Sir Keir Starmer has met former US President Donald Trump for the first time during a two-hour dinner in New York. The meeting took place at Trump Tower and was also attended by Foreign Secretary David Lammy.
Sir Keir was in New York to attend the United Nations General Assembly but made time to meet Trump before returning to the UK. Commenting on the dinner, the Prime Minister said it was “good” to have the opportunity to meet the Republican presidential nominee, adding that the purpose was “really to establish a relationship between” them.
A UK government source shared that the discussion touched on “the longstanding friendship between the UK and the US and the importance of continuing to develop the strong and enduring partnership between our two countries.”
Speaking ahead of the meeting, Trump expressed a positive view of the British Prime Minister, stating: “I actually think he’s very nice. He ran a great race, he did very well, it’s very early, he’s very popular.”
This meeting comes against the backdrop of Foreign Secretary David Lammy’s previous critical remarks about Trump. Lammy had previously called the former president a “racist” and a “neo-Nazi sympathising sociopath,” though no further comments were made regarding his attendance at the dinner.
During his visit, Sir Keir did not meet Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris, whom he has yet to meet. He previously stated his desire to meet both US presidential candidates ahead of the 5 November election. While he still hopes to meet Vice-President Harris, the Prime Minister cited “usual diary challenges” as the reason for their missed meeting on this occasion.
“I’m a great believer in personal relations on the international stage,” Sir Keir remarked, adding, “I think it really matters that you know who your counterpart is in any given country, and know them personally, get to know them face to face.”
At the time of Sir Keir’s visit, Harris was in Washington for talks with President Joe Biden and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, amid tensions between the Trump campaign and Zelensky’s visit. Republicans have expressed frustration over Zelensky’s decision to visit an arms factory in Scranton, Pennsylvania, with several top Democrats, leading to the cancellation of a previously expected meeting between Zelensky and Trump.
When asked by reporters if a Trump presidency might leave the UK more exposed on the global stage, particularly regarding support for Ukraine, Sir Keir responded: “The first thing I think is important to say is we’ve obviously had a special relationship with the US for a long time, forged in really difficult circumstances. That always sits above whoever holds the particular office, either in the US or the UK.”
He went on to assert that the UK-US relationship is “probably as strong now as it’s ever been” in relation to key global issues, including the Middle East and Ukraine. Sir Keir concluded by saying, “The US people will decide who they want as their president, and we will work with whoever is president, as you would expect. I’m not going to speculate on what any particular issues may be the other side of the election.”
Meanwhile, Labour MP and chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee, Emily Thornberry, voiced her concerns about building relations with Trump. Speaking on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, Thornberry said that while relationship-building was necessary, the UK “shouldn’t pull our punches.” She reiterated her belief that Trump is a racist and stressed that such behaviour should be “called out” if it occurs.
