Sir Keir Starmer will hold talks with Donald Trump in Washington within weeks as the “special relationship” faces strains under the incoming president.
The US President-elect, who takes office later on Monday, is weighing up whether to approve the appointment of Lord Mandelson as the UK’s new ambassador in Washington, the fate of the Chagos Islands deal and the extent to which tariffs will hit Britain.
Foreign Secretary David Lammy said Sir Keir would seek early talks with Mr Trump on a range of issues including trade, the war in Ukraine and the fragile ceasefire in the Middle East.
Mr Lammy is one of a series of high-profile Labour figures who have expressed trenchant opinions about Mr Trump in the past, calling him a “racist and KKK/neo-Nazi sympathiser”.
Relations between the Trump camp and Sir Keir’s party descended into a legal row after Labour volunteers campaigned for Kamala Harris during her election defeat.
But Mr Lammy has sought to build bridges with the incoming president’s allies and the Foreign Secretary and Prime Minister met Mr Trump in New York in September.
The Foreign Secretary described Mr Trump as a “revisionist actor” who “wants to change the rules of the game”.
Prime ministers have historically not attended the inauguration of a new president, but have sought to be early visitors to the White House.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and Foreign Secretary David Lammy at the White House in September 2024 following talks with Joe Biden (Stefan Rousseau/PA)
Mr Lammy said: “I think that when you look at past prime ministers, it’s taken between a week or up to a month to come to Washington. The importance is the strength of the relationship and the serious discussions that we have.
“In the end, we have war in Europe, we have a ceasefire in the Middle East, but it’s incredibly fragile, and there are important malign actors like Iran that we’ve got to discuss with the United States and, of course, our growing trade relations with the United States.
“So, lots to discuss, and I’m very confident that Keir Starmer will be discussing this with Donald Trump within the next few weeks.”
Following speculation that Labour grandee Lord Mandelson’s diplomatic appointment could be blocked by the US, Mr Lammy said he is the “right man for this moment” with experience as a former business secretary and European Union trade chief.
“He’s looking forward to presenting his credentials to Donald Trump,” Mr Lammy said.
And despite opposition within the Trump camp to the Chagos Islands deal, Mr Lammy said he was confident that the intelligence and military agencies in the US would persuade the new president it was a good agreement.
Foreign Secretary David Lammy delivers a speech in London (Stefan Rousseau/PA)
The UK plans to cede sovereignty of the British Indian Ocean Territory to Mauritius, leasing back the strategically important Diego Garcia base used by the US for 99 years at a reported annual cost of around £90 million.
Sir Keir and Mr Lammy have argued that International Court of Justice rulings in favour of Mauritius had jeopardised the legal status of the base.
But allies of Mr Trump, including his pick as secretary of state Marco Rubio, have voiced concerns this could allow Chinese influence to increase on the islands around the base.
Mr Lammy said: “It’s right and proper that Donald Trump looks at that deal and is confident about that deal.
“But I would say that this has been through an inter-agency process in the United States and I suspect he will come to the same conclusions as the last administration.”
The Foreign Secretary said Mr Trump believed in the US being “strong and powerful” but he was “not a man who, in any sense, is a warmonger”.
He told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “The Donald Trump I met… had incredible grace, generosity, very keen to be a good host, very funny, very, very, very friendly, very warm, I have to say, about the UK, our royal family, Scotland.”
He said he sees Mr Trump as a “revisionist actor” who “wants to change the rules of the game” and seems very focused on the possibility of normalising Saudi relations with Israel, which he said can only come if there is a path to a two-state solution in the Middle East.
Ahead of the inauguration in Washington, the Prime Minister said the UK-US special relationship “will continue to flourish for years to come”.
The president-elect will be sworn in to his second term in the White House eight years after he first took the oath of office.
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The Prime Minister paid tribute to the “depth of friendship” between the 47th president and the UK, and pledged to continue to “work together to ensure the success of both our countries and deliver for people on both sides of the Atlantic”.
Mr Trump spent the eve of the inauguration at a rally, where he declared his supporters had “built a new American majority that will lead our country to success for generations to come”.
In a statement on Sunday evening, the Prime Minister sent his congratulations to Mr Trump.
“For centuries, the relationship between our two nations has been one of collaboration, cooperation and enduring partnership. It is a uniquely close bond,” Sir Keir said.
“Together, we have defended the world from tyranny and worked towards our mutual security and prosperity.”
A number of UK political figures have gathered in Washington DC ahead of the inauguration – the Government will be represented by outgoing ambassador to the US Dame Karen Pierce.
Shadow foreign secretary Dame Priti Patel and Reform UK leader Nigel Farage are among the UK political figures in Washington ahead of Monday’s ceremonies.
In a video posted on X, formerly Twitter, on Saturday, Dame Priti said she was there to represent the Conservative Party, with whom the Republicans have a “decades-long relationship”.
She added: “Post-inauguration, our parties will continue to work together on those shared values to secure prosperity and freedom across the globe.”