On Thursday, Donald Trump hosts British Prime Minister Keir Starmer for talks aimed at putting the US leader on his second state visit with a firm focus on global issues, rather than domestic political problems.
President Trump and British PM Starmer will celebrate the launch of a £150-billion-pound ($205 billion) package of US investment in Britain after a day of pomp and ceremony, where President Trump was witnessed riding in a carriage with King Charles and feasting at a state banquet.
The agreements, which will encompass technology, energy, and life sciences, will provide a refresh of the so-called “special relationship” between the two countries, a key element that Starmer has been eager to nurture since Trump came to power in January.
Later in the day on Thursday, both leaders will be in a press conference where the journalists will be able to question both of them about the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Last week, Starmer had to fire Peter Mandelson as ambassador to the US after his friendship with Epstein was recorded, and Trump’s connections to the late financier were questioned.
Director of the British Foreign Policy Group think tank, Evie Aspinall, states, “For Starmer, he is having a difficult domestic time and he needs a positive international narrative and to bring Trump on board on key issues.” He further adds, “For Trump … it is important to him to show there is value in having close relations with him. For both sides, they realise there is a lot to be gained.”
In conversation with King Charles at Windsor Castle, Trump expressed his visit was “truly one of the highest honours of my life”.
This is what Starmer’s hopes would carry over to Thursday and prevent the U.S. leader from venturing into more controversial territories, including the online safety laws and the U.S. stance on Israel in Britain.
However, Starmer will desire to boast of the agreements accomplished between the two nations, such as a fresh technology arrangement with firms of Microsoft to Nvidia, Google, and OpenAI committing £31 billion ($42 billion) in investments over the following years, in AI, quantum computing, and civil nuclear energy.
According to comments reported by an official downplaying the likelihood of it happening, the British leader seems to have resigned himself to receiving no further reduction in steel and aluminum tariffs. Nevertheless, Britain is becoming a place where U.S. companies can invest, aligned with its financial services, tech, and energy industries, as Starmer says.
Starmer will also shift the agenda to foreign affairs on Thursday when he hosts Trump at his Chequers country home, in the hope that he can convince the US leader to do more in response to Russia over its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Last week, Trump appeased Europe when he labeled Russia as “the aggressor” during the war, but the president is also threatening to cut off all the Russian oil purchases within Europe before he is ready to impose heavier sanctions.
The British leader is pressuring Israel to escalate the attack on Gaza, with Trump, who has been vocal about the air attacks on Hamas leaders in Qatar, but generally has been supportive of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Trump has also denounced certain European states over their move to acknowledge a Palestinian state as “rewarding Hamas,” he told reporters that he would not mind if Starmer “taking a position.”
Political analyst Aspinall adds, “Those two geopolitical areas are likely to be the friction points in the conversations. There will be some awkward moments in those conversations.”
