Donald Trump and Sir Keir Starmer agreed to begin work on a new US-UK trade deal after the Prime Minister dangled the carrot of an unprecedented second state visit to woo the US president.
– Praised Sir Keir as a “tough negotiator”, saying he had tried to talk him out of tariffs and “I think there’s a very good chance that in the case of these two great, friendly countries, I think we could very well end up with a real trade deal where the tariffs wouldn’t be necessary”.
After a dramatic day at the White House, Sir Keir said the two leaders had decided “to begin work on a new economic deal with advanced technology at its core”.
Before the White House talks, the transatlantic relationship appeared to have come under strain in recent weeks following Mr Trump’s interventions on Ukraine – including calling its president Volodymyr Zelensky a dictator – and the threats of tariffs.
Before talks between the two sides, the Prime Minister presented the royal-loving US president with a letter from the King inviting him for a historic second state visit.
