Many people in the UK were anxious about prime minister Keir Starmer's meeting with US president Donald Trump today. With so much going on between Ukraine, a trade deal, tariffs and the Chagos islands, there is a lot to be concerned about.
Starmer's performance was, maybe surprisingly, quite good. It probably didn't hurt that the meeting with Trump started with a letter from His Majesty the King, inviting Trump for a second visit to the UK - an unprecedented invitation that Trump felt rather flattered to receive. The king surely deployed his soft power and it did seem to smooth things to a great start.
On his part, Starmer got most of what he came for. Trump made a somewhat vague claim about defending the British in Ukraine should peacekeeping forces be deployed - something which he however said would not be necessary. America's presence in the region to mine minerals will be enough to keep a lasting peace - or so the president believes. Starmer also cleverly balanced his stance on Russia with not directly confronting the US president, who recently called Zelensky a 'dictator'.
On trade, Starmer emphasised the strength of the relationship between the UK and the USA. Not only does the US have a little surplus with the UK, but both economies rank in the top two countries to invest in, top two countries for university, and have a tech sector bigger than one trillion dollars (the only two western countries to boast this). Perhaps most importantly, Trump said that a deal with the UK is being worked on "as we speak", and that a good deal that benefits both nations will be announced very soon. By the sound of it, the UK is well out of the president's firing line, who just yesterday threatened the EU with 25% tariffs. Another "Brexit dividend", then.
Lastly, when asked about Chagos Trump hinted at backing the deal.
We must be honest: Starmer performed very well on his first in-person meeting with the US president and both countries stand to benefit from a strong and thriving relationship.