94Ha Viewpoint
HA VIEWPOINT(94HA.COM): British Prime Minister Starmer said Britain does not need to choose between its special relationship with the United States and its relationship with the European Union, despite concerns that U.S. President-elect Trump’s plan to raise tariffs will undermine relations between the United States and its allies.
According to Bloomberg and AFP, Starmer attended the London Mayor’s annual banquet on Monday (December 2) and talked about foreign affairs in his keynote speech.
He said: “The idea that we have to choose between our allies, either the United States or Europe, is completely wrong. I completely reject this view. It is in our national interest to cooperate with both sides.”
Trump won the U.S. presidential election last month. During his campaign, he promised to impose tariffs of up to 20% on all products imported into the United States and 60% on Chinese imports.
Britain has previously said it needs to strike a balance between any tariff agreement proposed by Trump and strengthening commercial ties between the United Kingdom and the European Union, which may complicate Britain’s relations with its two closest allies.
Starmer tried to allay concerns that his relationship with Trump might become strained. The Labour prime minister spent much of his first five months in office trying to repair Britain’s relationship with the European Union. But after Trump returned to the White House, there were concerns that if Trump launched a trade war with the EU, it would put Starmer, who was seeking to reset relations with the EU, in a dilemma.
When talking about the UK-US relationship, Starmer said: “We are not considering emotional factors, but pragmatic realism. UK-US cooperation has brought the best hope to the world time and time again, and it is also the most reliable way to safeguard the national interests of both sides.”
Starmer also said that Britain “must be ready to talk to more countries, including China” to consolidate Britain’s global leadership, but this position may put him at odds with the Trump administration.
