Keir Starmer has made it clear he intends to stand up to Donald Trump over Ukraine as he jets over to Washington DC for one of the most consequential meetings ever between a US president and British prime minister.
Speaking to journalists on the flight over the Atlantic, Sir Keir insisted that Russia’s Vladimir Putin has to be viewed as the aggressor.
He will make clear that there can be no negotiations about Ukraine without Ukraine, and will push for Europe to play a greater part in global defence.
However, in a challenging meeting which will also encompass awkward conversations on plans to hand the Chagos Islands to Mauritius, trade deals and a potential visit by President Trump, Sir Keir was keen to talk up the relationship between the two.
The prime minister insisted that “there is no issue between us” on Ukraine as he jetted out – attempting to play down disagreements in the past two weeks.
He said: “Of course, the president has been very clear about the peace that he wants. He’s right about that. We all want peace. The question is, how do we make sure it’s a lasting peace? There’s no issue between us on this.”
His words came as it was revealed he plans to host Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelensky and other European leaders for a defence summit this weekend.
With talks on tariffs being imposed by the US and concerns by the Trump administration, inflamed by Elon Musk, on free speech in the UK regarding social media, Sir Keir will be keen to remind the president that the two countries share trade worth $400bn, which supports more than 2.5 million jobs across both countries.
The prime minister will join the president at the White House on Thursday, before a tete a tete at the Oval Office. He will be accompanied by the foreign secretary, David Lammy.
Last week, President Trump shocked allies in the West by calling President Zelensky a dictator and arranging a meeting in Saudi Arabia with Russia without Ukraine or Europe at the table.
Even worse, there was fury when the US sided with autocratic regimes including China and North Korea to vote down a resolution blaming Russian aggression for the war.
Sir Keir had to again attempt to play down concerns over his decision to slash foreign aid to fund defence spending increases – a move forced by Trump and causing grave concerns within Labour.
But in a sign that he does not intend to capitulate in the next 24 hours, Sir Keir was insistent that Russia must be blamed for the war.
Responding to comments from Putin’s foreign minister Sergei Lavrov ruling out British or French peacekeepers in Ukraine, he said: “There’s one aggressor here and that’s Russia.”
