Keir Starmer held talks with Emmanuel Macron on Trump, Ukraine and tariffs today ahead of Armistice Day events in France.
The PM was warmly welcomed by the President when he arrived in Paris – with the US handover on the agenda.
They are expected to consider whether commander-in-chief Joe Biden can be convinced to give Kyiv permission to use Storm Shadow missiles against Russia, as well as Donald Trump’s approach to the conflict.
The prospect of the Republic imposing sweeping tariffs on imports is also bound to come up, as world leaders support him to shake up the world order.
In the morning Sir Keir will host veterans, defense charities and British military personnel at the ambassador’s residence, and will also meet the new French PM Michel Barnier.
Sir Keir will be the first British prime minister to attend Armistice Day commemorations in France since Winston Churchill was hosted by General de Gaulle in 1944.
Keir Starmer and Emmanuel Macron stand in front of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Place de l’Etoile in Paris today
The leaders together laid a wreath to commemorate Armistice Day
Keir Starmer was warmly welcomed by Emmanuel Macron as he arrived in Paris today – with US handovers high on the agenda
Sir Keir and Mr Macron chatted as they entered for talks this morning
The leaders laid wreaths together in front of the statue of Georges Clemenceau on the Champs Elysees
Sir Keir is the first PM to attend Armistice Day in France since Churchill in 1944
The US president has prevented Ukraine from using Britain’s Storm Shadow on targets in Russia over fears Putin will carry out retaliatory strikes on Western military bases.
The use of Storm Shadow missiles in Ukraine has been widely debated by leaders for months
Trump issued a stern warning to Putin in his first phone call since the Republican won the presidency. In a phone call reported on Thursday, the incoming president advised Putin not to escalate the war in Ukraine and warned him of Washington’s “considerable military presence.” in Europe’.
Sources also told the Washington Post that Trump expressed interest in a follow-up conversation to discuss a ‘soon resolution of the Ukraine war’.
In a round of interviews this morning, Defense Secretary John Healey said the message was sent ‘absolutely right’.
“We will have to wait and see what President Trump proposes … but if the reports of his phone call with (Vladimir) Putin last week are correct, President Trump was right to warn Putin not to escalate the conflict in Ukraine,” he told BBC Breakfast.
“And our task as a country that supports Ukraine, one of the main supporters, together with allies like France, is to raise support to strengthen the position that Ukraine has at this time under great pressure from Russia.
Sir Keir has pledged to work with Trump, despite cabinet ministers including Foreign Secretary David Lammy and Deputy PM Angela Rayner criticizing the president-elect in the past.
Last week, the White House said that Mr. Biden would continue to “surging” humanitarian and military aid to Ukraine using funds already provided by Congress.
However, new reports claim that Trump’s transition office is considering a proposal that would seek to freeze the conflict in Ukraine with an ‘800-mile demilitarized zone’.
Mr Biden is said to have blocked Britain from authorizing Ukraine to use Storm Shadows on targets in Russia over fears of retaliatory attacks on Western military bases.
In the upcoming talks in Paris between Starmer and Macron, the impact of the incoming Trump presidency on the conflict in the Middle East and the potential trade war with Europe will also be discussed.
World leaders around the globe are looking forward to how drastically Trump intends to change US policy in Ukraine after his presidential victory last week.
The British PM hopes to negotiate a defense and security pact with the EU in the new year, another topic he will discuss with Macron.
Meanwhile, Mr Trump’s threat to impose tariffs on imports has raised alarm, amid fears of a trade war that would wreak havoc on the global economy.
FILE – President Donald Trump meets with Russian President Vladimir Putin at the G-20 summit in Hamburg, July 7, 2017
Britain, France and Germany have pledged to support Ukraine ‘forever’ and Zelensky has refused to cede the territory to Vladimir Putin.
Trump advised Putin not to escalate the war in Ukraine and warned him about Washington’s ‘military presence in Europe’, according to the Washington Post
There are high hopes in London that Biden will give Kyiv permission to use the Storm Shadow missiles – a demand that Ukraine has been making for months.
That is unacceptable to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and his European partners who believe that Kyiv should not hand over the territory to the Kremlin, and it remains unconfirmed by US officials.
Trump has famously said that the Russia-Ukraine war would not have started if he were president and claimed he could end the conflict — without announcing his plans.
A new Wall Street Journal report citing three sources ‘close to the president-elect’ says that Trump’s transition office is considering a proposal that would prevent Kyiv from joining NATO for at least 20 years in exchange for a lucrative arms deal.
In the meantime, the conflict will be halted by the implementation of a large demilitarized zone (DMZ) that will effectively freeze fighting and force Kyiv to cede up to 20 percent of its territory as part of the ‘800 mile DMZ. ‘.
But the source gave no details on how the buffer zone between Russia’s unoccupied border with Ukraine would be monitored or managed, other than to say it would not be manned by American peacekeepers.
‘We can do training and other support but the barrel will be European… and we’re not paying,’ one source was quoted as saying.
Britain, France and Germany have pledged to support Ukraine ‘forever’ and Zelensky has refused to cede the territory to Vladimir Putin.
However, many analysts have warned that Trump will indeed reduce US military aid to Ukraine and force Kyiv’s European partner to bear a greater burden to maintain an adequate supply of weapons.
