One also needs to overlook the hyperbole.
And as Starmer knew, even reaching the modest reduction in tariffs he secured on Thursday would not have possible without repeatedly rubbing the ego of the narcissistic occupant of the Oval Office, and dangling inducements such as a state visit to Britain later this year.
This then, is the cost of doing business with the United States, as Trump seeks to upend both the global system of trade, and cut ties with allies that have lasted for more than half a century.
Canada’s Prime Minister Mark Carney met with Trump earlier this week. Their words were polite but not warm, and the Canadian premier quite pointedly told Trump his country would never be the US’s 51st state. (Not surprisingly, there has not yet been a deal between Washington and Ottawa.)
But it has only become worse. At a series of cabinet meetings after returning to the White House, top officials including Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, have competed with each other to offer the most over the top praise.
It was no surprise either that Starmer brought up Winston Churchill and Victory in Europe Day, pointing out the historic nature of the date.
It had enjoyed an on-again, off-again relationship with that room, with both Barack Obama and Joe Biden, making space for other statues, and Churchill being placed on a table outside the White House’s Treaty Room.
Theresa May and Trump pictured by the bust of Winston Churchill in the Oval Office in 2017 (Photo: Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images)An awful lot of tosh gets said and written about the “special relationship” between the UK and the US.
For many decades, Britain has been carried on the US’s coat tails, punching above its weight in international affairs, and at places such as the UN, where the UK remains one of the five permanent members.
If Blair had not been so determined to chase after this relationship, would he had committed Britain to Bush’s illegal invasion of Iraq, even as he was being warned intelligence about Saddam Hussein’s alleged nuclear arsenal was not clear?
As Trump has shown, he is a capricious individual who can change his tune and his mood on a whim. Starmer might be in Trump’s good graces for now and the trade deal may remain in place while that is the case.
However for Starmer, and other European leaders, a much tougher test of how Trump truly views them will be if he can convince him to remain military engaged in the defence of Ukraine.
Britain and France and Germany have vowed to continue to help Ukraine, and its president Volodymyr Zelenskyy and even provide troops to monitor a ceasefire. But their efforts would be greatly hampered without US intelligence, logistics and financial backing.
Starmer should enjoy the warm glow of a good day while he can. It may not last.
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