President Donald Trump met with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer at the White House on Thursday to discuss the Russia-Ukraine war, tariffs, and trade relations.
At a later joint press conference, Trump said peace talks between Ukraine and Russia were progressing. “We’re working very hard to get that war brought to an end. I think we’ve made a lot of progress, and I think it’s moving along pretty rapidly,” he said, later adding, “It’ll either be fairly soon or it won’t be at all.” Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky are close to finalizing a deal for Ukraine to supply the US with rare-earth minerals in exchange for security guarantees. They are set to meet on Friday to finalize the agreement.
Starmer also said on the topic of security in Ukraine after the agreement is reached, “I think that European countries, including the United Kingdom, need to step up in our own defense and security. We’ve been doing that in recent days.”
Asked whether Starmer convinced him to exempt the UK from tariffs, Trump said, “He tried, he was working hard. He earned whatever the hell they pay him over there.” After laughter in the room, he added, “I think there’s a very good chance we can end up with a real trade deal where the tariffs wouldn’t be necessary. We’ll see.”
During an earlier meeting with the two leaders, Trump also reiterated that a 25 percent tariff on goods from Canada and Mexico would start Tuesday unless stronger action is taken to stop fentanyl trafficking. Reciprocal tariffs are set to begin on April 2.
Trump also confirmed he has accepted King Charles’ invitation for a state visit, presented earlier by Starmer. According to Starmer, this is the first time a U.S. president has been offered a second state visit.
Starmer announced Tuesday that the UK would accelerate its planned increase in defense spending, making the announcement prior to his visit with Trump in Washington. Starmer outlined plans to raise military spending from 2.3 percent of Britain’s GDP to 2.5 percent by 2027, followed by an increase to 2.6 percent in 2028. “This government will begin the biggest sustained increase in defense spending since the end of the Cold War,” Starmer told parliament, according to CNN.
He stated, “We must reject any false choice between our allies. Between one side of the Atlantic or the other. That is against our history, country and party.” He also called the US Britain’s “most important bilateral alliance” and said, “This week when I meet President Trump, I will be clear: I want this relationship to go from strength to strength.”
This Story originally came from humanevents.com