His decision to hug Donald Trump<\/a> close, despite the qualms of his own Labour allies, looked like a great idea \u2013 until it wasn\u2019t.<\/p>\n But by the end of another long week in politics during which it looked like the Nato<\/a> alliance might collapse, the Prime Minister can pack for next week\u2019s China trip believing he played a key role in averting disaster \u2013 at the same time as standing up to Trump more stridently than ever before.<\/p>\n The US President had thrown another huge rock into international waters by announcing he would impose a tariff of 10 per cent<\/a>, rising to 25 per cent, on countries, including the UK, which were publicly opposing his threats to seize Greenland<\/a>. <\/p>\n \u2018An act of great stupidity\u2019<\/p>\n This would have knocked up to 0.8 per cent off Britain\u2019s GDP, according to Oxford Economics \u2013 a hefty blow to a Government which claims its priority is growth. With the EU threatening retaliation amounting to a full-blown trade war, the UK looked set to be further damaged in this crossfire.<\/p>\n So instead of spending the week talking about his policies to bring down the cost of living, starting with a speech in Yorkshire and continuing with the launch of the warm homes plan<\/a>, Starmer found himself once again wading into the choppy waters of the transatlantic partnership.<\/p>\n He had to summon a Downing Street press conference on Monday morning, cancelling his speech, to try and calm things down<\/a>.<\/p>\n But it did not work: in the early hours of Tuesday, Trump took direct aim at the UK Government over the decision to hand the Chagos Islands to Mauritius, a move previously backed by the White House.<\/p>\n Trump said on his Truth Social website: \u201cThe UK giving away extremely important land is an act of GREAT STUPIDITY, and is another in a very long line of National Security reasons why Greenland has to be acquired.\u201d<\/p>\n The setback, which blindsided No 10, provided quiet satisfaction for those in Labour who had always been uncomfortable with the Starmer-Trump alliance.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Trump whispering thing has been shown to be not even a qualified success,\u201d one senior MP remarked.<\/p>\n Contrasts were drawn with EU leaders, who were quickly drawing up a package of retaliatory tariffs<\/a> to hit back at the US, along with strong words. <\/p>\n Canada\u2019s Mark Carney<\/a> \u2013 the former head of the Bank of England and a friend of Rachel Reeves \u2013 delivered an acclaimed speech at the World Economic Forum in the Swiss ski town of Davos calling on America\u2019s allies to wake up to the need to become more self-reliant and build new friendships.<\/p>\n \u201cThe old order is not coming back. We should not mourn it,\u201d he said. \u201cNostalgia is not a strategy.\u201d<\/p>\n In Davos on Wednesday Trump had threatened: \u201cAll the US is asking for is a place called Greenland. You can say yes, and we will be very appreciative. Or you can say no and we will remember.\u201d<\/p>\n But hours later the script was flipped again. He announced out of the blue that he had hatched a deal in Davos with Nato members to shore up the security of Greenland, and that he was withdrawing the tariff threats.<\/p>\n One Cabinet minister said the about-face showed that Starmer had been right all along to avoid antagonising the President<\/a>, for example by denouncing him in a way similar to the scene in Love Actually where the British prime minister, played by Hugh Grant, makes an anti-American speech in front of president, played by Billy Bob Thornton.<\/p>\n \u201cThere is a pretty widespread view across the Cabinet that the Love Actually approach would have the opposite effect to the one you want,\u201d the minister told The i Paper. \u201cThe characterisation \u2018Keir was supine\u2019 is not right because he was so strong on Greenland.\u201d<\/p>\n Another MP said: \u201cIt doesn\u2019t hurt us to have a different position to the EU. It allows Keir to paint himself as an honest broker.\u201d <\/p>\n Backbenchers were sharing a meme which jokingly quoted Starmer as saying, \u201cLook, I get it, he\u2019s mental but what the f**k do you want me to do about it?\u201d<\/p>\n That is not to say that the Prime Minister has not shifted his position on Trump. <\/p>\n This week he became more critical of the President than he has been in the past, saying in the House of Commons that he \u201cwill not yield\u201d on Greenland and challenging Trump directly over his mixed messaging on Chagos.<\/p>\n \u201cHe deployed those words for the express purpose of putting pressure on me and Britain in relation to my values and principles on the future of Greenland,\u201d Starmer said.<\/p>\n He also hit back when Trump played down the contribution of non-US troops to Nato operations in Afghanistan<\/a>. On Friday, Starmer issued his toughest ever rebuke of the President, saying: \u201cI consider President Trump\u2019s remarks to be insulting and frankly appalling and I am not surprised they have caused such hurt to the loved ones of those who were killed or injured and, in fact, across the country.\u201d<\/p>\n Cup-of-tea diplomacy<\/p>\n But within the national security establishment, it is believed that trying to cut Britain loose from America is a pipe dream, and that the threats coming from Canada and the EU are not backed up either by hard power or by a willingness to sacrifice existing priorities in favour of mutual defence.<\/p>\n Starmer himself boasted that his \u201cpragmatic\u201d approach towards Trump was \u201cvery British\u201d \u2013 and Denmark\u2019s Prime Minister, Mette Frederiksen, agreed, telling him at a Downing Street meeting that the \u201cBritish way of doing things\u201d where \u201cyou have a cup of tea and then you think a bit about everything\u201d had successfully de-escalated the tensions.<\/p>\n As she left No 10, she wrote in the visitors\u2019 book a homage to the Beatles: \u201cWe\u2019ll get by with a little help from our friends.\u201d<\/p>\n Starmer will seek to hammer home his successes on a trip to China<\/a> next week, although he will face tough questions about whether getting too close to Beijing could be a threat to Britain\u2019s security.<\/p>\n The question now is a familiar one \u2013 whether or not the Prime Minister can help use a strong position on the world stage to build up his credibility at home, with Labour still languishing in the polls.<\/p>\n An ally of Starmer insisted he can use global credibility to win back domestic popularity, saying: \u201cEven if you don\u2019t like him a lot of people will think he is a reassuring presence.\u201d<\/p>\n The source added: \u201cLord knows where we will be by the next election, but it is not unforeseeable that he could point to a good track record there and say, \u2018Kemi was cheering Trump on and Farage was cheering Putin on.\u2019 Imagine if they\u2019d been in charge!\u201d<\/p>\n Andy Burnham wildcard<\/p>\n One place Starmer might not be at the next election is No 10.<\/p>\n Labour MPs remain unhappy with a string of policy blunders and U-turns<\/a> \u2013 two more of which materialised this week, as Starmer delayed the passage of a \u201cHillsborough law\u201d designed to make public officials more accountable after major disasters and announced he would be open to a ban on under-16s<\/a> using social media, a position he had previously opposed.<\/p>\n The potential return of Andy Burnham<\/a> to Westminster could be a major wildcard. The Mayor of Greater Manchester has not, at the time of writing, ruled out a bid for the Labour candidacy in the by-election for the vacant seat of Gorton and Denton, prompting warnings from Starmer allies that they may seek to block Burnham from getting the nod to stop him becoming eligible to replace the current Labour leader.<\/p>\n But even if Burnham doesn\u2019t stand, that the prospect of his return is causing such disquiet speaks volumes about the Prime Minister\u2019s precarious position.<\/p>\n One supporter of the Prime Minister\u2019s foreign policy expressed a fear that the domestic turmoil could end up weakening his stance on the world stage, saying: \u201cThere will be a temptation against the backdrop of Andy Burnham<\/a> to get tougher on Trump, and out-do Wes Streeting<\/a> on Europe.\u201d<\/p>\n Chris Hopkins, of pollsters Savanta, warned it would be tough for the Prime Minister to make political gains from foreign affairs.<\/p>\n \t\tYour next read<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/SEI_281946873.jpg\")
Part of Trump\u2019s tweet on his Truth Social site<\/p>\n![\"President](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/SEI_281700571.jpg\")
Donald Trump with Nato secretary-general, Mark Rutte, in Davos this week. The two reportedly cooked up a deal for Greenland, leading to a U-turn on the US President\u2019s proposed tariffs (Photo: Evan Vucci\/AP)<\/p>\n![\"Keir](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/SEI_281924307.jpg\")
Sir Keir Starmer with Andy Burnham in June 2024. The Mayor of Greater Manchester may seek to run for Labour leader (Photo: Hollie Adams\/Bloomberg via Getty)<\/p>\n
![\"Article](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/SEI_281958813.jpg\")
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