When asked whether Starmer would tell Trump that Britain would spend “much more” on defence amid US demands for Europe to shoulder more of the burden for its own security, Phillipson told the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg show: “We will be spending much more on defence, and our allies need to step up alongside that.
Starmer’s meeting with Trump will come after the US president meets Macron, who will be the first European leader to travel to Washington since Trump’s inauguration.
Bridget Phillipson, the education secretary, said the 2.5% target was “ambitious”, despite Labour previously claiming it would set out a path to meeting this spending goal after the strategic defence review in the spring.
The shadow defence secretary, James Cartlidge, said the Conservatives “do stand by the prime minister” before of his meeting with Trump, noting that “it’s in all of our interests to stand up to Putin”.
Keir Starmer is unlikely to set out a plan for when the UK will increase its defence spending to 2.5% of GDP this week, a cabinet minister has indicated.
