The prime minister wants to keep everyone happy. He has been loath to criticize Trump, has warmed up Britain’s post-Brexit partnership with the European Union, avowedly backed Kyiv and thawed ties with China. At a time of geopolitical upheaval, he is attempting to squeeze Britain into an impossibly tight Venn diagram.

If there is a cease-fire without a backstop, it will simply give him the opportunity to wait and to come again,” Keir Starmer warned on the flight to Washington, D.C.

UK PM Keir Starmer heads to US to discuss Ukraine war, NATO and tariffs with Trump The UK Prime Minister is due to meet President Donald Trump at the White House on Thursday. Support for Ukraine in the war against Russia and the relationship between European nations and the US are expected to be the main topics of discussion.